') 
 
 A.m.?... 
 
Studies in the 
 Four Gospels 
 
 'BY / 
 PROF. WILLIAM G. MOOREHEAD, D. D. 
 
 Author of 
 
 'Outline Studies in the Old Testament," "Studies in the Mosaic 
 Institutions," etc. 
 
 * 
 
 PHILADELPHIA 
 THE WESTMINSTER PRESS 
 
 1900 
 
Copyright, 1900, by the Trustees of 
 The Presbyterian Board of Publication and Sabbath- 
 School Work. 
 
PREFACE 
 
 This book is not an Introduction to the Four 
 Gospels, much less is it a Commentary on them. 
 It is intended to be just what its title indicates : 
 Studies. Its aim is to point out as clearly and 
 briefly as possible what is conceived to be the 
 main design of the Spirit of God in these precious 
 records. Whether that design has been rightly 
 interpreted, and whether it has been adequately 
 set forth, it is left to the reader's judgment to 
 determine. 
 
 In the prosecution of these Studies, many books 
 have been consulted. References to them in the 
 text are scanty, chiefly because it seemed un- 
 desirable to burden the pages with them. Here, 
 however, it seems proper to mention those which 
 have been of special help, viz. : Bellett, Jukes, 
 Gregory, and Thompson, on the Four Gospels ; 
 and the commentaries of Wescott, Reynolds, 
 
4 Preface 
 
 Alford, and Brown; the Expositors' Bible and 
 the Cambridge Bible. No single book has been 
 more serviceable than the little volume of Presi- 
 dent Henry G. Weston on the Gospel according 
 to Matthew. 
 
 William G. Moorehead. 
 Xenia Theological Seminary. 
 
STUDIES IN THE FOUR GOSPELS 
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 Gospel means good news. There is but one 
 gospel — the glad tidings of salvation through our 
 Lord Jesus Christ. From the earliest times, 
 however, the term has been applied to each of 
 the four narratives which together form the 
 '^ four-sided gospel,'' as Origen called it. In the 
 oldest copies of the New Testament the title is 
 simply, ^^ According to Matthew,'' " According 
 to Mark," etc., which seems to import, not that 
 these are four separate works, but that the one 
 gospel has been committed to writing by the 
 evangelists in this fourfold account. Augustine 
 speaks of " the four gospels, or rather the four 
 books of the one gospel." 
 
 Evangelical Christians hold, on what they con- 
 sider good and sufficient grounds, that the four 
 gospels were written by the men whose names 
 they bear. The primitive Church invariably 
 ascribed them to these four men, nor has the 
 most laborious and searching examination shown 
 
 5 
 
6 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 that the tradition concerning their authorship has 
 ever varied. There is unmistakable evidence 
 that in the third quarter of the second century 
 (a. D. 150-175) these four gospels as one collec- 
 tion were generally received and read by Chris- 
 tians as Scripture in their assemblies for the 
 worship of God. 
 
 The time of their composition cannot be deter- 
 mined with any degree of certainty; it can be 
 only approximately stated. Somewhere between 
 A. D. 50 and 65 the synoptics, as Matthew, Mark, 
 arid Luke are called, were written. The Gospel by 
 John dates from a later period. Probably in the 
 decade between A. d. 80 and 90 it was published 
 by the servant of Christ whose name it bears. 
 
 On taking up these incomparable narratives 
 for study several things arrest attention : 
 
 1. No one of them nor all of them combined 
 form a biography of Christ. This is apparent 
 from their limits. Bagster's Bible prints the 
 four in 82 pages, the Oxford in 104, the Revision 
 (8vo.) in 88 pages. In the Bagster, Matthew has 
 but 23 pages; Mark, 15; Luke, 25; and John, 
 19. Less than one hundred pages are devoted 
 to that life which at once is the most strangely 
 human and yet the most superhuman, the most 
 natural and yet the most supernatural that the 
 world has ever seen. It is indeed most true that 
 the Holy Spirit can and does place before us all 
 
Introduction 
 
 i 
 
 we need to know with a brevity which no human 
 writer can successfully imitate : and this is not 
 the least part of His glory that the written Word 
 comes to men in a compass suited to the least 
 amount of leisure, of capacity, and of means. 
 But it is manifest from their limits as well as 
 from their contents that the gospel records were 
 not designed to be a life of Christ, else why do 
 the evangelists pass over in silence the thirty 
 years of our Lord's earthly sojourn ? And why, 
 after giving a detailed account of the events and 
 circumstances attending His birth, do they omit 
 all reference to His life in Nazareth, save the one 
 brief incident of His visit to Jerusalem when 
 twelve years old (Luke ii. 42-50), and dwell ex- 
 clusively on His public ministry ? It is with His 
 redemptive work they are concerned, with His 
 Messianic deeds and words they deal, for their 
 one aim is to set Him forth as the promised De- 
 liverer, the one supreme Saviour, for whose advent 
 the saints of the olden time looked and longed, 
 and the one in whom men must find salvation. 
 Of all the gospels the same design may be predi- 
 cated which John testifies was his aim : " And 
 many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence 
 of His disciples, which are not written in this 
 book : but these are written that ye might believe 
 that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God ; and 
 that, believing, ye miglit have life through His 
 
8 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 name " (Jolm xx. 30, 31). John's great purpose 
 was to give believers the gosj)el of the Messiah, 
 the Son of God, not to write a biography of Him. 
 No less must be said of Matthew, Mark, and 
 Luke. The books they wrote are not memoirs, 
 much less miscellanies : they form, and were 
 meant to form, the gospel of the grace of God. 
 They are ^' histories of redemption as accom- 
 plished in the life, death, burial, and resurrection 
 of the Lord Jesus Christ.'' (Weston.) 
 
 2. There is a marked diversity between the 
 synoptic gospels and John's. John's record 
 stands by itself, having little more in common 
 with the other three than the one august person 
 who is the supreme center of all. After the ref- 
 erence to the testimony of John the Baptist 
 (i. 15-18), the Fourth Gospel parts company with 
 the synoptics and meets them but once again, 
 viz., feeding the five thousand (John vi.) until 
 the closing scenes are reached. With almost 
 studious purpose John omits some of the most 
 important events in the Lord's life. Thus, he is 
 silent as to His birth, temptation, the appointment 
 of the twelve, the transfiguration^ the institution 
 of the holy supper, and the agony in the garden. 
 These and the like omissions are all the more 
 strange when it is remembered that the writer 
 often describes events with the most careful 
 minuteness. This is seen more especially in 
 
Introdacilon 9 
 
 John's additions to the synoptic narrative. Thus 
 with what graphic detail does he record the 
 miracle at Cana, the interviews with Nicodemus, 
 and with the woman at the well, the cure of the 
 cripple at the pool of Bethesda, the cure of the 
 man born blind, the raising of Lazarus, and the 
 overwhelming display of His power in the garden. 
 Besides, the synoptists confine their record 
 almost exclusively to the ministry in Galilee, 
 though there are in them unmistakable liints 
 that they were acquainted with his work in 
 Judaea. Thus our Lord's words of lamentation 
 over impenitent Jerusalem imply that He had on 
 many occasions sought to win the inhabitants to 
 Himself, and that they had rejected all His over- 
 tures : '^ O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that kill- 
 est the prophets, and stonest them which are sent 
 unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy 
 children together, even as a hen gathereth her 
 chickens under her wings, and ye would not !" 
 (Matt, xxiii. 37, cp. ; Luke xiii. 31-35). The 
 Lord's visit to the home of Mary and Martha 
 which Luke records (x. 38-42), as has often been 
 pointed out, suggests previous acquaintance with 
 Lazarus and his sisters, while John (xi.) clearly 
 indicates that Jesus had long known them and 
 was a frequent guest in their house. But the 
 synoptists are silent touching the Judfean ministry, 
 and their silence appears to be almost of delib- 
 
10 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 erate purpose. They seem even studiously to 
 omit any direct reference to it. On the other 
 hand, John certainly knew of the Galilsean min- 
 istry. In vii. 1-3 John records words which 
 show that Galilee was the ordinary scene of 
 Christ's ministry; but he just as studiously 
 leaves the account of that ministry to the synop- 
 tists, and confines himself almost exclusively to 
 that of Judaea. 
 
 Furthermore, there is obvious diversity be- 
 tween the synoptists and John in the method of 
 presenting their great subject, Jesus Christ. The 
 former are occupied mainly with His miracles, 
 discourses, journeys, and with the opposition he 
 encounters from the nation's chiefs which cul- 
 minates in his rejection and crucifixion. John 
 indeed does not ignore these weighty matters, and 
 and yet there is in the Fourth Gospel a halo of 
 glory cast about all that Jesus does and teaches 
 which is peculiar, and which marks Him off as the 
 solitary sovereign, the heavenly stranger, the 
 Son of God, Himself God. This appears no less 
 in His miracles than in His discourses. If one 
 may so express it, Jesus in John is ineffable, 
 transcendent ; and His teaching. His action, the 
 very atmosphere with which He surrounds Him- 
 self, are superhuman, and unapproachably spir- 
 itual. An ancient writer perceived this, and 
 named it ^^ the Spiritual Gospel " (Clement of 
 
Introduction 1 1 
 
 Alexandria). The marvelous words of Jesus in 
 John xvi. 28 indicate the mold in which this 
 gospel has been formed by the Spirit of God : 
 " I came forth from the Father, and am come 
 into the world ; again, I leave the world, and go 
 unto the Father." He is the heavenly stranger, 
 the divine visitor. He is all this likewise in the 
 other gospels most assuredly, but in John this 
 feature in the Lord Jesus is characteristic and 
 preeminent. Such are some of the phenomena 
 observed when the synoptics and the Fourth Gospel 
 are compared and contrasted. Do the differences 
 admit of explanation? An easy and shallow 
 method of dealing with them is to call them real 
 discrepancies, to charge the evangelists with ig- 
 norance and error, and to assert that the Fourth 
 Gospel is the product of the second century, and 
 that the apostle John was not its author. To re- 
 fute the assaults of rationalists on the inspired 
 records is no part of the present undertaking. 
 This has been triumphantly done by the noble 
 defenders of the word of God. Every fresh in- 
 vestigation, necessitated by renewed controversy, 
 only serves to fortify and strengthen Christian 
 belief in the genuineness and authenticity of these 
 narratives. The apostolic authorship of the Fourth 
 Gospel, especially, it may be confidently affirmed, 
 stands on grounds that are indisputably secure. 
 Can any satisfactory reason be offered for the 
 
12 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 silence of the synoptics with respect to Christ's 
 Jiidsean ministry ? Perhaps not. It pleased the 
 Holy Spirit to order the accounts in the gospels 
 as they are, and it is the joy of faith to accept 
 them as they are. Still, some things may be 
 reverently said of this remarkable silence. The 
 hypothesis of ignorance is untenable. The cure 
 of the cripple at the pool of Bethesda (John 
 v.), the restoration of sight to the man born 
 blind (ix.), and the resurrection of Lazarus (xi.), 
 produced too jorofound and widespread an im- 
 pression to have been ignored by Matthew, Mark, 
 and Luke. John calls special attention to the 
 effect of Lazarus' resurrection on the heads of 
 the Jewish nation, and informs us they deter- 
 mined to put both Jesus (xi. 53) and Lazarus (xii. 
 10) to death on account of it. Besides, it seems 
 more than probable that the apostles were pres- 
 ent wdien Jesus opened the eyes of the blind man 
 (ix. 2), and when He raised Lazarus (xi. 12, 16). 
 It is incredible that the other evangelists as well 
 as John should not have known of these great 
 miracles. Why did they not record them ? It 
 may have been from prudential motives, as 
 Prof. Upham and Dr. Reynolds have suggested. 
 There is verisimilitude in the conjecture. The 
 followers of Christ were from the first regarded 
 with suspicion by the fanatical Jews of Jeru- 
 salem. The suspicion and aversion deepened into 
 
Introduction 1 3 
 
 hostility and persecution with the powerful testi- 
 mony of Stephen (Acts vi., vii., viii. 1-3 ; xi. 19). 
 It was exhibited at a later period in the violent 
 outbreak against Paul (Acts xxi., xxii.). 
 
 Naturally their hostility would be directed in 
 an especial manner against those who were in- 
 timately associated with Jesus, as His mother, the 
 family of Bethany, and the cripple of Bethesda, 
 or those who held some position of influence, as 
 Nicodemus. Had the synoptists recorded His in- 
 terview with Nicodemus, the ruler ; had they re- 
 ported the resurrection of Lazarus ; had they 
 told how Jesus had committed His mother to the 
 care of John, they would have thereby exposed 
 these their fellow-believers to great danger. So 
 they were guided by the Spirit to omit all refer- 
 ence to them. But when John wrote, all these 
 persons were gone, Jerusalem itself was lying in 
 ruins, the temple demolished, and the chosen 
 people were in exile; and now everything relating 
 to the ministry of the Lord in Judsea and at Jeru- 
 salem could be freely told, for all peril of the loved 
 ones was passed. It is like our gracious God 
 thus to shield and protect His beloved people. 
 True, the synoptists mention Jose])h of Ari- 
 mathsea, and Matthew tells us he was a disci ])le, 
 and Mark that he was an honorable councilor 
 (xv. 43) ; but John informs us he was a secret 
 disciple, for fear of the Jews (xix. 38). Besides, 
 
14 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Joseph's home was at some distance from Jeru- 
 salem, and therefore he would be comparatively 
 secure. 
 
 3. Another thing challenges our attention as 
 we study the synoptics, Matthew, Mark, and 
 Luke — viz., their remarkable agreements or co- 
 incidences. Much of the contents is common to 
 all three. They seem to travel the same road, to 
 relate the same events, miracles, and discourses. 
 In one the account may be briefer, in another 
 more of the details may be given ; yet essentially 
 the record is one. In some cases, particularly 
 where our Lord's words are quoted, the agree- 
 ment is verbally exact. These facts lie on the 
 surface, and are patent to every attentive reader. 
 
 But this is not all. The substantial agreement, 
 striking as it is, is oiFset by differences and di- 
 vergences just as striking. Some of them may 
 be noted. In Matthew the genealogy of the 
 Saviour is traced from Abraham down to Joseph, 
 and in the royal line of David. In Luke it is 
 carried from Joseph and Heli up to David 
 through Nathan, David's son, and thence to 
 Adam. Mark omits it altogether. Matthew 
 records the sermon on the mount as a continuous 
 discourse (chapters v.-vii.) ; in Luke portions of 
 it are found in various places (chapters vi., xi., 
 etc.) ; while Mark makes no reference to it at all. 
 Some of the parables are peculiar to each, ten 
 
Introduction 1 5 
 
 being found in Matthew alone, one in Mark 
 alone, and fifteen in Luke alone. There is a 
 long section interposed by Luke between the 
 transfiguration and the end of the ministry (x.- 
 xix. 10), usually designated as the Pera}an min- 
 istry, which is hardly noticed by Matthew and 
 Mark. Besides, the chronological sequence of 
 events is not observed alike by the three. 
 Matthew groups the sayings and miracles of the 
 Lord in accordance with its author's plan, following 
 the order of events only in a broad and general way. 
 Mark is distinguished for its swiftness of action 
 and rapidity of movement ; Avhile I^uke has more 
 of the style of the historian. Such in brief are 
 some of the agreements and differences of these 
 three gospels. 
 
 These and the like facts constitute the " Prob- 
 lem of the Synoptics.'' How did these narratives 
 originate? It is one of the most intricate and 
 fascinating of all the questions in New Testa- 
 ment literature. The answers to it are many, 
 often contradictory, and in all cases unsatisfactory. 
 It may be it will never be solved. Here are a 
 few of the theories advanced to account for 
 these inspired records. Some say the evangelists 
 copied from each other ; others, that there was a 
 primitive document or documents of which each 
 writer availed himself; others still, hold that 
 they embody a " double tradition," or a " triple 
 
16 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 tradition/' or a tradition that may be described 
 as multiform. Not one of these and the like 
 theories is satisfactory. It is incredible that 
 these matchless histories should have been con- 
 structed by what Salmon sharply calls a " liberal 
 use of paste and scissors." The evangelists were 
 not servile copyists ; they could not be. 
 
 Another view which has gained a wide accep- 
 tance is this, that Matthew wrote for the Jew, 
 Mark for the Roman, Luke for the Greek, and 
 John for the Christian Church. While there is 
 a measure of truth in this view, nevertheless it 
 does not satisfy the minds of many thoughtful 
 readers, nor does it explain all the facts. Jesus 
 Christ is the center of all revelation, as He is of 
 God's counsels ; nations, primarily, are not. 
 The words of Dr. Weston are weighty and true : 
 " What, then, are the gospels ? They are liis- 
 tories of redemption as accomplished in the life, 
 death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ. Each gospel prepares the way for its 
 successor, each telling afresh the story of the 
 life, death, and resurrection from its own point 
 of view, each presenting its own phase of the 
 history of redemption in process, each begin- 
 ning at a higlier level than the preceding. The 
 gospels are vitally related to one another, and 
 the four constitute an organic whole." 
 
 Nothing better is offered as an explanation of 
 
Introduction 1 7 
 
 the agreements and differences that the synop- 
 tics exhibit than the okl one — viz., tliat these 
 Scriptures are essentially the reproduction of the 
 oral gospel. From the day of Pentecost the 
 apostles and their fellow Christians preached the 
 gospel of the grace of God. It was in obedience 
 to Christ's command that they did so (Matt, xxviii. 
 18, 19 ; Mark xvi. 15). It was the one great 
 business of their lives. But it was inspired 
 preaching, as the Lord Jesus promised (John xiv. 
 16, 17 ; XV. 26, 27 ; xvi. 13, 14). The apostle 
 Peter assures us that the first ministers of the 
 word *^ preached the gospel unto you with the 
 Holy Ghost sent down from heaven'' (1 Pet. i. 12). 
 Now their preaching, from the nature of the 
 case, must have consisted mainly of a recital of 
 the great events in the life and ministry of the 
 Lord. They had been witnesses of His deeds and 
 sufferings which it concerned all the world to 
 know. His teaching, His miracles, and journeys ; 
 His compassion and tenderness ; His sinlessness ; 
 His death for sinners of mankind, and His resur- 
 rection, would form the staple of their instruc- 
 tions, as they do the instructions of missionaries 
 in heathen lands at the present time. AYhen the 
 time came to give the gospel to the Church in a 
 permanent form, they wrote it much as they 
 preached it. The conclusion of Irenseus is worth 
 remembering: ^^ Thus the apostles, simply and 
 
18 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 without envying any one, handed down all these 
 things which they themselves had learned from 
 the Lord/^ Every fresh examination of these 
 inspired records justifies the words of the great 
 Father. 
 
 The view that the written gospels are founded 
 upon the oral gospel as preached by the apostles 
 can hardly be said to be complete ; it does not 
 exhaust the subject. There are omissions and ad- 
 ditions that affect these narratives in the profound- 
 est way. Whether a satisfactory elucidation of 
 them can be made is doubtful. Nevertheless, 
 some light may be shed on them. There is a 
 manifoldness and comprehensiveness in holy 
 Scripture that no other writing possesses. The 
 Spirit of God, who is the real author of the 
 Bible, often combines a variety of ends and aims 
 in what He is pleased to communicate to men. 
 
 That there is a special design in the composi- 
 tion of each of the gospels can hardly be doubted. 
 The material is largely common to the synoptics, 
 but it is employed and arranged in each in sub- 
 servience to a definite plan. Once we come to 
 see the plan, we have the answer to the question, 
 " Why four gospels ? '^ Christ is the one glori- 
 ous theme of all. Each evangelist is more parti- 
 cularly occupied with some prominent feature in 
 His complex character and offices. He seizes 
 upon some predominant relation which He sustains 
 
Introduction 1 9 
 
 to God and to His people, and this He presses 
 with convincing power. It is the unfolding of 
 this particular feature in the work of the Saviour 
 that marks the design ; this that gives each 
 gospel its character, and distinguishes it from the 
 others. 
 
 These gospels are inseparably bound up with 
 the predictions and promises of the Messiah con- 
 tained in the Old Testament. The Bible is a 
 unit. A theory of interpretation which fails or 
 refuses to embrace in it all that God has revealed 
 on any topic stands self-condemned. Any eifort 
 to explain the gospels apart from the great Mes- 
 sianic prophecies must end in partial or dismal 
 failure. 
 
 The prophets have drawn an august portrait 
 of Messiah. His person, offices, missions, quali- 
 fications, suifering, death, resurrection, and glory 
 are described by them with a minuteness of de- 
 tail which ordinarily belongs only to history. 
 Not the least notable feature in the prophetic 
 announcement of His advent is the number and 
 and variety of the names and titles bestowed 
 upon Him. These may be grouped into four 
 classes or arranged under four principal heads. 
 
 1. He is called the King (Ps. ii. 6 ; Ixxii. ; Isa. 
 xxxii. 1; Jcr. xxiii. 5; xxx. 9; Dan. ix. 25; 
 Zoch. ix. 9 ; xiv. 9, etc.). In these passages and 
 many others of the like tenor, the kingly office of 
 
20 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 the Messiah is made very prominent. He who is 
 coming is a royal personage, the heavenly sover- 
 eign. Moreover, the prophets dwell much on 
 His kingdom, its nature, its establishment, extent, 
 duration, and blessedness. They seem never to 
 grow weary in proclaiming the coming of the 
 kingdom, and in recounting the glories that shall 
 attend its ultimate triumph on earth when the 
 Lord shall be one, and His name one over all the 
 world. Even a cursory study of Messiah's king- 
 ship as it is presented in the prophets will con- 
 vince one of the extent to which it pervades the 
 Old Testament. 
 
 2. He is called the Servant of Jehovah (Isa. 
 xlii. 1-7; xlix. 1-12; 1. 4-9; Hi. 13-15; liii., 
 etc.). In these passages Isaiah gives him the sig- 
 nificant title "The servant of Jehovah," and 
 describes his glorious work with remarkable de- 
 tail. (See also Jer. xxiii. 6 ; Ezek. xxxiv. 23 : 
 Zech. xiii. 6, 7; Mai. iii. 1-4; iv. 2.) The 
 prophets assure us that the Deliverer is the 
 supreme Prophet of God who will declare the 
 divine will, who shall Himself accomplish per- 
 fectly that will, and man's neglected duty ; that 
 He will fulfill every divine requirement, and meet 
 every human need. In short, Messiah is to be the 
 second Adam, who shall undo the ruin wrought by 
 the first man. He will redeem His people with an 
 infinite price, the price of His own blood (Isa. liii.). 
 
Introduction 21 
 
 3. He is called the Man, the Son of man (Gen. 
 iii. 15; xxii. 18; Isa. vii. 14-1 G ; ix. 6; Dan. 
 vii. 13, etc.). It is distinctly foretold that in a 
 very pecnliar sense He is to be the seed of the 
 woman, and yet the offspring of Abraham, the 
 son of David. A veritable man Messiah must 
 be, one who shall be incorporated with our race, 
 the Son of Mankind, therefore the Kinsman 
 Redeemer of all the people of God (Lev. xxv. ; 
 Kuth iii. ; iv. ; Job xix. 25-27). 
 
 4. He is called God (Isa. ix. 6 ; xl. 3-8 ; xlvii. 
 4 ; Jer. xxiii. 6, etc.). The prophets witness to 
 the great truth that Messiah is none other than 
 the Lord of Glory, that it is God himself who 
 shall visit and redeem his people. 
 
 These four groups of Messianic titles are very 
 intimately associated with the fourfold account 
 of the Lord Jesus contained in the New Testa- 
 ment. The evangelists bring the person and the 
 work of Jesus Christ alongside of the portrait 
 of the Messiah as drawn by the prophets, the 
 historical by the side of the predictive, and the 
 two are found to match perfectly. The inspired 
 writers show beyond peradventure that the De- 
 liverer promised of God through the ages to the 
 Old Testament saints has appeared in Jesus of 
 Nazareth ; that what was foretold of Hi m is fulfilled 
 in Jesus ; that the Redeemer has come ; that the 
 mighty redemption has been wrought ; that He is 
 
22 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Messiah, and therefore worthy to receive His 
 illustrious names ; He is the King, the Servant, 
 the Son of man, and God. 
 
 The offices of Messiah embodied in these four 
 titles appear in the four gospels. Jesus of Naza- 
 reth is herein set forth as the King, the Servant 
 of Jehovah, the Friend and Saviour of men, 
 and the Son of God. He is King not only in 
 Matthew, but in all the others also. So likewise 
 he is Servant, Kinsman Redeemer, and Son of 
 God in each. While this is perfectly true, never- 
 theless, it seems quite clear to us that each evan- 
 gelist appropriates the characteristic feature found 
 in each title, and to it he gives a certain promi- 
 nence which he does not to the other titles. And 
 it is precisely this that constitutes the design or 
 aim of a particular gospel. For design is dis- 
 covered by the' prominence that is given to a 
 particular truth. We come to know the purpose 
 or object the writer has before him by the 
 emphasis with which he states and elaborates 
 some central fact, by the importance which he 
 attaches to it. That each of the four gospels 
 has a design seems to us beyond question. 
 These are not loosely arranged miscellanies ; 
 much less are they intended to be a life of 
 Jesus Christ. They are written for a very 
 definite end ; they have one supreme object — 
 viz., to set forth the stupendous fact of redemp- 
 
Introduction 2:^ 
 
 tion through our Lord Jesus Christ, and this tor 
 the comfort and joy of faith. 
 
 Matthew's is the gospel of Israel's M(\ssiah, 
 the promised aud predicted King. The very 
 first verse of the book is the key to the whol(\ 
 Jesus is the son of David, He is also the son of 
 Abraham. Matthew places David first because 
 He of whom he writes is David's heir, the glori- 
 ous King in whom all the provisions of the 
 covenant made with David are to find their 
 ample fulfillment. The Wise Men ask, " Where 
 is He that is born King of the Jews?!' The 
 sermon on the mount is the King's manifesto, 
 His royal proclamation. The miracles, discourses, 
 and actions of Jesus through this First Gospel all 
 contribute to the establishment of the funda- 
 mental truth, Messiah is come ; He is Jesus of 
 Nazareth. 
 
 Mark's is the gospel of the Servant of Jehovah, 
 the mighty Minister of God, who does God's will 
 perfectly on earth. The key word is '^ Straight- 
 Avay," a term which describes activity, and energy 
 in the prosecution of the work given Him to do. 
 Accordingly, in Mark we find nothing about His 
 birth. His lineage. His friends or home, and but 
 little is recorded of His discourses. His teachings. 
 He is in the Second Gospel the busy one, ever- 
 more devoted to the work which was given Him 
 to do. 
 
24 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Luke's is the gospel of the Kinsman Kedeemer, 
 whose compassions go out to all sorts of people, 
 whose pity is as wide as the race of man. Ac- 
 cordingly, Luke traces His genealogy up to Adam 
 the father of the race, thus linking Him witli all 
 mankind. The key is the midnight song of the 
 angels — the Gloria in Exeelsis, as men have named 
 it : ^' Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, 
 peace, good will toward men.'' 
 
 John's is the gospel of the Son of God, of the 
 eternal Logos. The Spirit so orders and shapes 
 the record, arranges the material, and marshals the 
 facts, as to secure His own blessed purpose. The 
 Deliverer promised of old to the saints of God 
 was to be the King, God's minister, the Kinsman 
 Redeemer, that God might be glorified in the 
 salvation of all wdio believe. But none other 
 than a divine person could accomplish the mighty 
 task. Therefore, one gospel, the fourth, is pre- 
 eminently devoted to the person and work of the 
 Son of God. 
 / One cannot but feel that divine w^isdom shines 
 
 / out in the choice of the four penmen. Matthew 
 was an official of the Roman empire; and he is 
 appointed to write of Him who is the great King, 
 
 \ the Sovereign of the universe. Mark was a serv- 
 I ant (Acts xii. 12; xiii. 5); and he was selected 
 
 / to portray Him who while Lord of glory was con- 
 
 I tent to become the servant, the girded, not the 
 
Introduction 25 
 
 arrayed one. Luke was a pliysician (Col. iv. 14) ; 
 and he was chosen to tell of Him who is the healer 
 of the sin-sick and dying. And John, the beloved 
 disciple, who leaned on Jesus's breast, was chosen 
 to reveal Him who was " in the bosom of the 
 Father.'^ 
 
 There is inspiration in the choice of the theme 
 of each gospel, and in the selection of the penmen. 
 Some of us are still old-fashioned enough to be- 
 lieve in plenary inspiration, and in structural also. 
 
THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO 
 MATTHEW 
 
THE 
 GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW 
 
 Ix all the ancient copies of the New Testament 
 Matthew's Gospel stands the first of the four 
 gospels, and at the head of all its books. It is 
 difficult to explain the reason for its position. It 
 may be because it was the first written of the 
 four, as some of the early Christian and many 
 modern writers say. Or it may be because of 
 the nature of its contents. Matthew is the con- 
 necting link between the Old Testament and the 
 New. In its structure, in its wide and varied 
 use of the older Scriptures, and in the form and 
 construction of many of its sentences it resembles 
 somewhat closely an Old Testament book. It 
 binds the two Testaments together as no other 
 book of the New Testament does. For these or 
 other reasons it may be the Gospel according to 
 Matthew was given the place it now holds, and 
 always has held, in the canon. 
 
 I. The author. From the earliest times, as 
 far back as the history is traceable, it has been 
 uniformly ascribed to the apostle Matthew. 
 
 29 
 
30 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 There is not a dissentient voice. Christian an- 
 tiquity knew no other author. Doubt on the 
 subject, or denial, is modern, and springs mainly 
 from philosophical presuppositions and doctrinal 
 bias. The Gospel itself offers no feeble evidence 
 of its authorship ; it bears its own credentials. 
 That it was written by a Christian Jew must be 
 granted by all. The writer's intimate knowledge 
 of the times and the events which he describes, 
 the questions then so eagerly and anxiously de- 
 bated among the Jews, their attitude toward the 
 teaching of the Lord Jesus, and their hostility to 
 all His Avork and walk ; the minute acquaintance 
 he displays with the thoughts and feelings, the 
 ambitions and aspirations of the apostles and dis- 
 ciples, betoken strongly that he was an eyewit- 
 ness of what he relates, and one of Christ^s com- 
 pany. If so, he was himself an apostle, and if 
 an apostle, then he was Matthew, and no one 
 else. 
 
 Throughout the Gospel he receives the name 
 Matthew and no other. Even when called to be 
 a disciple he is thus designated (ix. 9). In the 
 corresponding places in Mark (ii. 14) and Luke 
 (v. 27) he is called Levi. The same person seems 
 to be meant. Probably his original name was 
 Levi, and upon his call to be an apostle (x. 3), 
 or thereafter, he took the name Matthew, which 
 signifies " The gift of Jehovah/' Such changes 
 
Gospel According to Matthew 31 
 
 of name were common — e. g., Simon into Peter, 
 Saul into Paul, Nathanael into Batholomew. 
 Mark tells us that Levi was " the son of Al- 
 phreus/^ It has been conjectured that Levi's 
 father was the same as Alphseus the father of 
 James the apostle (Matt. x. 3). If so, then Mat- 
 thew and James were brothers. But it is not 
 probable, for the two are not named together in 
 any list of the apostles, whereas brothers are gen- 
 erally grouped together there. An incidental 
 mark of authorship is appended to his name 
 in chapter x. 3, in the phrase, " Matthew the 
 publican." In the lists of the apostles given in 
 Mark (iii. 18) and Luke (vi. 15), the distinguishing 
 epithet is not employed ; Matthew alone intro- 
 duces it, and it is his sign manual. 
 
 A publican was a collector of imposts under 
 the Roman government. Matthew, however, 
 was stationed at Capernaum, which was in the 
 the tetrarchy of Herod Antipas. Accordingly, he 
 exercised the office under that ruler, which was 
 one degree better than if he had been a publican 
 directly under Rome. Still, Herod was Rome's 
 creature ; and hence the publican under his rule 
 was almost as odious as any other. For the 
 vicious system, wherever prevailing, led almost 
 of necessity to dishonesty and extortion. Publi- 
 cans were cordially hated by the public generally. 
 They were regarded as the enemies of society and 
 
32 Siiidles in the Four Gospels 
 
 traitors to the cause of Israel. They were shunned 
 as outcasts, unfit for the companionship of the 
 upright and the patriotic. It was the sneer of 
 the Pharisees that Jesus who refused to act accord- 
 ing to their code received sinners, and even ate 
 with them (Luke xv. 1, 2). " Publicans and 
 sinners " is a phrase we often meet with in Script- 
 ure, and it is significant. Of no social standing, 
 and commanding no respect, the publicans made 
 company of those who, like themselves, were out- 
 casts and ^^ sinners." To this class Matthew 
 belonged. Luke records (vs. 27-32) that after 
 his call Matthew made a great feast for Jesus, 
 and ^' a great multitude of publicans and others 
 were sitting at. meat with them" (R. V.). We 
 learn from the account who those ^^ others " 
 were — viz., ^' sinners," verse 30. They were the 
 only persons, probably, who would be found at a 
 taxgatherer's table. The Pharisees were deeply 
 offended that our Loi^d should mingle with such 
 ^' company." No respectable Hebrew would dare 
 attend such a feast — a company of worthless folk, 
 ostracised and excommunicated. What an out- 
 rage on social and religious decency ! By two 
 brief but telling statements, one a quotation from 
 the Old Testament, Jesus effectually put to silence 
 the carping critics. 
 
 II. Did Matthew write his Gospel in Hebrew 
 (or Aramaic, the dialect of Hebrew spoken at the 
 
Gospel According to llatthcw 33 
 
 time in Palestine), or in Greek, or in both? This 
 question is not asked with a view to its discus- 
 sion, but only for the sake of a remark that is 
 deemed important. The majority of the early 
 Christian writers affirm Avith considerable una- 
 nimity that there existed a Hebrew Gospel by 
 Matthew. Disbelief in a Hebrew original is en- 
 tertained by many modern writers, while its ex- 
 istence is the belief of many others. The question 
 is not yet settled, far from it, nor will it be until 
 further light is had. That the Greek Gospel by 
 Matthew is an original and not a translation is 
 susceptible of strong proof, almost amounting to 
 a demonstration. It bears every mark of being 
 an original, and nothing scarcely of being the work 
 of a translator. Our MatthcAV " stands on pre- 
 cisely the same footing as the other gospels : it is 
 cited as early, and as constantly as they are.'' The 
 conclusion of Alford is that also of the most de- 
 vout and reverent students of the New Testament 
 — " We have thus to consider the First Gos- 
 pel on the same ground, and to judge it by the 
 same rules, as the Second and Third Gospels." 
 AVe may come to its study, therefore, with the 
 confidence that we have here that which it pleased 
 the Holy Spirit to give us through the apostle 
 Matthew. 
 
 III. Structure of the Gospel. The book is care- 
 fully composed, and its contents are arranged 
 
34 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 with the most marvelous exactness and skill. 
 Order growing out of a preordained plan and 
 well-defined purpose characterizes it throughout. 
 ^' There is not a sentence in it but is in its logical 
 place, not one that is not a link in the chain/^ 
 (Weston). The plan molds the style, governs 
 the structure, and knits the parts together into 
 perfect unity. This feature, so uncommon in 
 books, is not to be attributed to the official train- 
 ing which Matthew received, nor to the business 
 habits he acquired Avhile engaged as a collector 
 of taxes. No man, no matter what his education 
 or his experience, could ever, unaided, have writ- 
 ten such a book as this. Its real author is the 
 Spirit of God. Of course, it is quite true that 
 the penman was fitted by his trainiug to be a 
 serviceable instrument for the Spirit^s use ; but 
 this is all that can be affirmed of it. 
 
 The book falls into three parts. Part I. The 
 genealogical descent, birth, and events attending 
 it, chapters i., ii. Part II. The public or official 
 work of Jesus, and manifestations of liis Mes- 
 siahship, chapters iii.-xvi. 12. Part III. Prep- 
 aration for the crucifixion and resurrection. Parts 
 II. and III. are each preceded by a time note 
 and a significant event. The baptism is the not- 
 able ev6nt that introduces Part IL(iii. 16). The 
 mark of time is, ^' From that time Jesus began 
 to preach, and to say. Repent : for the kingdom 
 
Gospel According to Maiihcw 85 
 
 of heaven is at hand" (chapter iv. 17). Jesus' 
 baptism was fraught with the deepest lessons and 
 with the most momentous issues. Only a few 
 of these need now be mentioned. (1) It authen- 
 ticated the mission and ministry of John the Bap- 
 tist. (2) It was "to fulfill all righteousness/' i. c, 
 every ordinance and requi remcnt. Jesus' supreme 
 mission was to do the will of God. (3) It meant 
 identification with his people. " It behooved 
 him to be made like unto his brethren" (Heb. li. 
 17). John's baptism was unto repentance for the 
 remission of sins. But Jesus had no sin to con- 
 fess, and none to be remitted (Heb. vii. 26). Why, 
 then, is He here ? It is of grace — the source and 
 channel of everything in Him. He is one with 
 His people, and He will identify Himself with them 
 even in submitting to the ordinance for repent- 
 ance and remission of sins. (4) It was to induct 
 Him officially into his ministry. At the Jordan, 
 centuries before, God had magnified Joshua in 
 the sight of all Israel, as the successor of Moses 
 (Josh. iii. 7). He was but a dim shadow of the 
 true Joshua- Jesus. Here again at the Jordan 
 God magnifies the Lord Jesus by the gift to Him 
 of the Holy Spirit, and by His own audible voice 
 announcing His good pleasure and His delight in 
 Him, thus acknowledging and sealing Him as his 
 Son, His Servant, and Messiah (John i. 33 ; iii. 
 34; vi. 27). Isaiah had predicted that the Spirit 
 
36 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 of the Lord should rest upon the Messiah, and J 
 so qualify Him for His mighty task (xi. 2 ; Ixi. 1/ 
 2) ; and at His baptism the promise is fulfilled 
 (cp. Luke iv. 17-19). Baptized by John with 
 water, baptized with the Holy Spirit without 
 measure, He goes forth to encounter and conquer 
 the adversary in the wilderness, and to accomp- 
 lish the mighty mission for which He was sent 
 into the world. ^^And Jesus returned in the 
 power of the Spirit into Galilee ^^ (Luke iv. 14,) 
 and began the Galilsean ministry. 
 
 Part III. is likewise introduced by a time note 
 and a notable event (chapters xvi. 13-xxviii.). The 
 mark of time is the following : " From that time 
 began Jesus to show unto his disciples, how that 
 he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many 
 things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, 
 and be killed, and the third day be raised up," 
 (xvi. 21, R. V.) This is the first distinct pre- 
 diction in Matthew of the Lord's crucifixion and 
 resurrection. 
 
 The event connected with this third part of 
 the Gospel is the transfiguration (xvii. 1-9 ; verse 
 9 of this chapter again announces His resurrec- 
 tion). The transfiguration was intended to ilhis- 
 trate more than one great truth. (1) It Avas a 
 supernatural exhibition of the essential glory of 
 Christ. The dazzling splendor with which His 
 person glowed was not external or reflected, not 
 
Gos2')cl According to Matthew 37 
 
 sometliing put upon Him ; it was His own ; it 
 dwelt within Him, though commonly veiled from 
 human sight; was the display of the infinite per- 
 fection that necessarily belonged to Him as the 
 Son of God. (2) It was a symbolical represen- 
 tation of His power and coming. So Peter, one 
 of the witnesses of it, explains it (2 Pet. i. 16-18). 
 (3) It was to confirm the prophetic Scriptures. 
 The deep lesson that Peter gathered from this 
 marvelous scene he has himself forcibly stated : 
 ^^ And we have the word of prophecy made more 
 sure ; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as 
 unto a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day 
 dawn, and the day-star arise in your hearts'' 
 (2 Pet. i. 19). The disciples had a firmer hold 
 on the prpphetic word after the transfiguration 
 than ever before ; so should we. (4) It was to 
 *^ inaugurate the sufferings of Christ, and to set 
 Him apart as the Lamb of God who was to take 
 away the sin of the Avorld " (Dods). The three 
 who were the witnesses of His transfiiruration 
 Avere likewise witnesses of His mysterious agony 
 in the garden. Nor is it too much to say that the 
 one scene is closely associated with the other. 
 Luke reports a word that formed the topic of the 
 conversation which Moses and Elijah had with 
 Him in the mount — " decease," exodus, i. e., His 
 departure from the world. But in His exodus he 
 would accomplish such a deliverance as that 
 
38 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 eifected through Moses, save that His would be the 
 glorious reality, while that was no more than a 
 dim and distant shadow. In view of that blessed 
 exodus toward which He was now turuing His face 
 with solemn and deliberate determination, the 
 Father again, as at His baptism, audibly attests 
 His delight in Him : '• This is my beloved Son, in 
 whom I am well pleased ; hear ye him,'' (xvii. 5). 
 There are therefore two well-defined stages in 
 the ministry of Christ, according to Matthew. 
 In the first stage (chapters iii. 13-xvi. 20), the 
 Lord proclaims the kingdom of heaven, works 
 the signs and wonders proper alone to the Mes- 
 siah — wonders and signs that confirm and estab- 
 lish His doctrine touching the kingdom, and Him- 
 self as the King. Then at the close, of it He 
 takes account with His disciples of the result of 
 His labors and testimony : " Who do men say 
 that I, the Son of man, am?'' (xvi. 13-20). In 
 the second stage. He addresses Himself to the 
 solemn, awful event of His crucifixion (xvi. 21- 
 xxviii.). In the first, the kingdom is made most 
 prominent, is pressed upon the chosen nation 
 with unparalleled earnestness and power. In 
 tlie second, tlie kingdom perceptibly recedes, and 
 becomes at length the subject of prophecy and 
 the object of hope (chapter xxi. xxiii.-xxv.). The 
 cross looms upward on the dark horizon ever 
 more distinctly and vividly, until the tremendous 
 
Gospd According to Matthew 39 
 
 deed is done. In the one, the King and His 
 kingdom arc offered to the nation on the only- 
 conditions npon which they could be presented — 
 viz., npon the people\s repentiince and their ac- 
 ceptance of Jesus as the Messiali. In the other, 
 the King is rejected, the kingdom is taken from 
 the rightful owners, is given, to others, and the 
 King goes to the cross. The Jews' rejection of 
 Jesus as Messiah leads to their rejection in turn ; 
 then the fall of Jerusalem, the demolition of the 
 temple, the destruction of their polity, and their 
 dispersion throughout the world are announced ; 
 and the disci })les are bidden to carry the glad 
 tidings of salvation to all the nations (chapters 
 xxiii. 34-39; xxviii. 18-20). 
 
 How amazing is the answer the apostles return 
 to His question, ^' Who do men say that I, the 
 Son of man, am?'' "Some say, John the Bap- 
 tist ; some Elijah ; and others, Jeremiah, or one 
 of the prophets." This is the report of the dis- 
 ciples as to Israel's conception of Jesus. Not 
 one word about the Messiah ; not even a hint 
 that He might be the expected Deliverer. They 
 say He is a prophet, perhaps even one risen from 
 the dead, but nothing more. That He is the 
 Messiah appears foreign to their thoughts of 
 Him. And this is the outcome, the fruit of a 
 ministry and testimony such as the world had 
 never before seen, never will know until He 
 
40 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 comes again, a ministry when the Son of God, 
 the Messiah of Israel, spoke to men, wrought His 
 mighty deeds among them ; when the powers of 
 the world to come were manifested and felt as 
 never before nor since. Heaven, earth, demons, 
 angels, and the Father Himself bore witness to 
 Him, and yet the people could see no more in 
 Him than a prophet like Elijah or Jeremiah, and 
 could infer no more than that He might be the 
 risen Baptist. So true it is that " He came unto 
 his own, and his own received him not;" so 
 true it is that " the world Avas made by him, and 
 the world knew him not'' (John i. ICT, 11). At 
 His own door He stood and knocked, only to find 
 it shut in His face. Israel rejected their Mes- 
 siah, and the kingdom promised them was taken 
 away from them. 
 
 IV. A more particular analysis is the following : 
 Matthew demonstrates that Jesus did the public 
 work and bore the public character of the Mes- 
 siah, the promised Prophet and King. This he 
 accomplishes by many infallible proofs : (1) By 
 His genealogy, chapter i. ; (2) by events con- 
 nected with His birth, whereby ancient prophecies 
 were fulfilled, ii. ; (3) by the ministry of John 
 the Baptist, iii. ; (4) by the trial of the King, 
 iv. ; (5) by the proclamation of the kingdom, v.- 
 vii. ; (6) by the miracles, viii., ix. ; (7) by the 
 mission of the twelve, x. ; (8) by tlie enunciation 
 
Gospel According to Maithao 41 
 
 of the principles of the kingdom, and its progress 
 in the world, xi.-xiii. ; (9) by the hostility of the 
 rulers and the unbelief of the people, xiv.-xvii. ; 
 (10) by the Messianic character exhibited and 
 claimed, xviii.-xxi. ; (11) by His rejection, and 
 His predictions of the end, xxii.-xxv. ; (12) by 
 His sacrifice, and the events associated therewith, 
 xxvi., xxvii. ; (13) by His triumphant resurrec- 
 tion, xxviii. 1-17; (14) and by His royal com- 
 mission, xxviii. 18-20. 
 
 Another analysis is the following : 
 A. Messiah's Birth, chapters i., ii. 
 
 1. Genealogy, chapter i, 1-17. 
 
 2. Birth, i. 18-25. 
 
 3. Visit of the Wise men, ii. 1-12. 
 
 4. Flight into Egypt, ii. 13-23. 
 
 B. Messiah's preparation for His Ministry, 
 iii., iv. 11. 
 
 1. Preaching of John, iii. 1-12. 
 
 2. Baptism of Jesus, iii. 13-17. 
 
 3. Temptation, iv. 1-11. 
 
 C. Messiah's Presentation to Israel by signs, 
 and wonders, and mighty deeds, iv. 12-xvi. 12. 
 
 1. Beffinnino^ of His Ministrv, iv. 12-25. 
 
 2. Sermon on the Mount, v.-vii. 
 
 3. Messianic Miracles, viii., ix. 
 
 4. Mission of the Twelve, x. 
 
 5. Dangers impending, warnings uttered, 
 xi., xii. 
 
42 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 6. Prophetic History of the Kingdom of 
 Heaven, duriug the present dispensation, xiii. 
 
 7. Messianic Works and Words, xiv.-xvi. 
 12. 
 
 D. Messiah taking account of results of His 
 Ministry, xvi. 13-20. 
 
 E. Preparation of Messiah for the Cross, xvi. 
 21-xxv. 
 
 1. First Prediction of His Death, xvi. 21. 
 
 2. Second Prediction, xvii. 9, 12. 
 
 8. Third Prediction,- :5ix. 18, 19. 
 
 4. Final Testimony to Impenitent Israel, 
 chapters xxi.-xxv. 
 
 F. Arrest, Trial, and Crucifixion of Messiah, 
 chapters xxvi., xxvii. 
 
 G. Messiah's Resurrection, xxviii. 
 
 V. The central idea of the First Gospel. From 
 the preceding remarks it is clear that Matthew's 
 is the Gospel of the Messiah. The main object 
 of the Spirit in this Scripture is to show that 
 Jesus of Nazareth is the predicted Deliverer, of 
 whom Closes and the prophets did write. Ac- 
 cordingly, the events in the life of Jesus, His 
 words and His works, are grouped together so as 
 to prove and illustrate this great theme. This, 
 it is believed, is the prominent feature of the 
 Gospel. Messiah, according to the prophets, is a 
 divine person ; He is also human, the son of a 
 virgin ; moreover, He bears the holy name, Im- 
 
Gospel According to 3Iatthew 43 
 
 manuel, God with us. But in a special sense He 
 is the King of Israel, the Redeemer of the chosen 
 people (Isa. vii. 14 ; ix. 6 ; liii. ; Jer. xxiii. 5). 
 
 Furthermore, He is the Son and Lord of 
 David and the occupant of his throne (2 Sam. vii. 
 12, 13; Acts ii. 30-32). All these features in 
 the person and work of the Messiah Matthew 
 keeps in view. But his preeminent theme is, 
 Jesus the promised King and Deliverer, the one 
 in whom the Messianic predictions find their am- 
 ple and complete fulfillment. This appears from 
 the first sentence of his book (chapter i. 1). It 
 is the key-verse of Matthew. Every book of 
 the Bible has its key, and- the key is not always 
 hung up at the door. Here, however, it is : 
 ^' The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the 
 son of David, the son of Abraham.^' The chron- 
 ological order is reversed. David was later than 
 Abraham by centuries, yet he is named first. 
 Why ? Because it was with him the royal INIes- 
 sianic covenant was made (1 Chron. xvii. ; Psalm 
 Ixxxix.). Jesus is that glorious Son of whom it 
 was promised in the covenant, " His throne shall 
 be established forever." Hence Matthew names 
 David first as progenitor of Messiah. But Mes- 
 siah is also the son of Abraham. God made two 
 covenants with the chosen people : one with 
 Abraham, in which it was stipulated that all na- 
 tions should be blessed in his seed; the other 
 
44 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 with David, iu which the prominent feature is 
 the everlasting throne and kingdom of God, The 
 first is the gracious covenant ; the second, the 
 royal. The first contemplates redemption ; the 
 second, the establishment of that kingdom which 
 in due time will subdue all things to God. 
 Matthew takes up both and shows how they have 
 their fulfillment in the Lord Jesus. But it is 
 with the Davidic he is more especially concerned ; 
 and so he orders the names in the first verse of 
 his book as he does : " Jesus Christ, the son of 
 David, the son of Abraham.'^ Christ is the one 
 and only one promised in the two covenants. 
 
 We are now to see how Matthew works out 
 the great theme, that Jesus is the Messiah fore- 
 told in the Old Testament, and waited for by the 
 people of God. 
 
 I. The order of narration in Matthew is worthy 
 of notice. Chronological sequence is not strictly 
 adhered to. There is, of course, a general ob- 
 servance of the succession of events in the minis- 
 try of the Lord, but Matthew's plan is thoroughly 
 systematic, and his plan molds the structure of 
 the book. He arrano^es his material in a loo-- 
 ical rather than in a strictly historical manner. 
 He groups events and discourses and many of the 
 miracles together, though they may be somewhat 
 sundered fK)m each other as to the time when 
 
Gospel According to Matthcio 45 
 
 they actually occurred. The indefinite particle 
 of time " then/' found in the First Gosj^el some 
 ninety times, marks the transitions in the narra- 
 tive. The phrase, " When Jesus had ended these 
 sayings,'^ indicates the topical arrangement (vii. 
 28 ; xi. 1 ; xiii. 53 ; xix. 1 ; xxvi. 1). 
 
 II. In the development of his theme Matthew is 
 careful to keep within the limits of Jewish 
 hopes. He never loses sight of the essential 
 point, the presentation of Jesus to the chosen 
 people as the Messiah. By this is not meant 
 that this Gospel was written for the Jews, either 
 Christian or unbelieving. "As soon might we- 
 say that because it is the kingly Gospel it was 
 written for kings.'' In proving the fulfillment 
 of the Messianic promises and hopes in the per- 
 son and work of Jesus, he likewise proves that 
 salvation by Him is brought and offered to them. 
 Accordingly, the First Gospel moves almost ex- 
 clusively within Jewish circles. Here Jesus says 
 He is sent only to Israel's lost sheep (xv. 24). He 
 commands His apostles to preach only to Jews ; 
 gentiles and Samaritans are passed by (x. 5). 
 Jews are the children of the kingdom (viii. 12). 
 According to the unvarying apostolic custom, 
 Matthew presents the Saviour first and foremost 
 to the covenant people. After His rejection, 
 death, and resurrection, the message of salvation 
 is sent to the whole world (xxviii. 18-20). 
 
46 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 III. Messiah's Genealogy (chapter i.). In 
 Matthew, it is strictly Jewish, being carried 
 down from Abraham to Joseph, the husband of 
 Mary ; while Luke traces our Lord's human de- 
 scent from Joseph through Heli up to Adam, the 
 father of our race. The^First Gospel is occupied 
 with the Saviour's Jewish relations, the third 
 with those He sustains to the whole race. Some 
 things in these two genealogical tables are worthy 
 of note. Matthew's obviously is that of Joseph, 
 and is in the royal line through ''David the 
 king," Solomon, Rehoboam, etc. From Abraham 
 to David the two correspond, but from David to 
 Joseph they widely differ. Luke probably gives 
 us Mary's (proof is deferred until his Gospel is 
 under review). Messiah was to be the seed of 
 woman, the son of a virgin (Gen. iii. 15; Isa. 
 vii. 14). The prophecy had its literal fulfillment 
 in the birth of Jesus (Matt. i. 18-23; Gal. iv. 
 4). Messiah was Joseph's son only in the legal 
 sense, as entitled to sit on David's throne. Had 
 Joseph been Hjs father according to the flesh, He 
 could not have occupied that throne. God's 
 word barred His way to it. In Jer. xxii. 30, we 
 read, '' Thus saith the Lord, Avrite ye this man 
 childless, a man that shall not prosper in his 
 days : for no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting 
 upon the throne of David, and ruling any more 
 in Judah." This sentence is pronounced against 
 
Gospel According to Matthew 47 
 
 Jehoiakin or Jechoniab, the last king but one of 
 Jiidali in the line of David, and he never had a 
 son to rule ; Zedekiah, his successor, was his 
 uncle (2 Kings xxiv. 17 ; Jer. xxxvii. 1). Now, 
 Joseph, the husband of Mary, was the lineal de- 
 scendant of this man Jechoniab (Matt. i. 11, 12). 
 Luke traces the line through Nathan to David 
 (Luke iii. 31). Nathan was David's son (2 Sam. 
 V. 14). But neither Nathan nor bis heirs had 
 any promise to occupy David's throne. The 
 royal line was in Solomon and his descendants. 
 If, therefore, Jesus' is the son of Nathan accord- 
 ing to the flesh, how is He to reach the throne ? 
 The difficulties are twofold and serious : if He is 
 Joseph's son according to the flesh, then God's 
 word in Jer. xxii. 30 stands between Him and the 
 throne ; if He is Nathan's son. He has no legal 
 right to it. The solution is by marriage. By 
 divine direction, Joseph becomes Mary's husband, 
 and thus Messiah's way to David's throne is 
 cleared of every obstacle. Two genealogies are 
 indispensable to meet all the requirements of 
 God's w^ord touching the incarnation ; the one to 
 accomplish the prophecy that Messiah is both 
 David's son and heir, the other to fulfill the pre- 
 diction that He is the son of a Hebrew virgin.^ 
 
 ^ See Wilkinson's " Israel My Glory," from which much 
 of the above remarks on Messiah's (lenealogies in Matt, and 
 Luke is taken. 
 
48 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Between Joram and Uzziali (verse 8) the list 
 omits three names : Ahaziah, Joash, and Amaziah. 
 Two reasons may be given for the omission : 
 first, to bring the number of names within the 
 limit of fourteen ; second, to throw out the more 
 immediate descendants of the wicked Athaliah, 
 daughter of Ahab and Jezebel. God's Spirit ex- 
 hibits His resentment at the grafting of that 
 idolatrous stock upon the house of David by re- 
 fusing to admit the names of Athaliah's heirs for 
 three generations. 
 
 Another omission occurs at verse 11, viz., 
 Jehoiakim, father of Jehoiakin, or Jechoniah 
 (verse 12). There is some slight evidence that this 
 omission occurred through the oversight of some 
 scribe of a very ancient text of Matthew.^ 
 
 Four women are found in Matthew's list, with 
 three of whom — viz., Tamar, Rahab, and Bath- 
 sheba — heinous sin is found. The fourth, though 
 
 * The similarity between the names of Jehoiakim and 
 Jehoiachin in some Greek forms is very great, and tlie latter 
 might readily be mistaken for the former, and thus one of 
 them might be omitted. Besides, the expression ** Jechonias 
 and his brethren" is difficult, for while Jehoiakim had 
 broth.ers (2 Chron. iii. 15), we nowhere read Jehoiakin had. 
 Moreover, Jehoiakim reigned eleven years (2 Kings xxiii, 
 36), while Jehoiakin reigned but three months (2 Kings 
 xxiv. 8). If both names were in the original Matthew, then 
 we have the exact number of fourteen generations in each 
 division. As the text stands, Jechoniah begins and ends 
 two divisions. 
 
Gospel According to Matthew 49 
 
 pure and true, belonged to an abhorred race, the 
 Moabites. Messiah's ancestors were fallen and 
 guilty, like the rest of mankind. But although 
 He was descended from an impure race. He 
 brought no taint of sin into the world with Him ; 
 though He associated with sinful men and grap- 
 pled with fierce temptations, He was without sin ; 
 therefore can He, the strong and the mighty, de- 
 liver the oppressed. 
 
 lY. The quotations made from the Old Testa- 
 ment in Matthew. They far exceed in number 
 those found in any one of the other gospels ; 
 they almost equal those of all the others com- 
 bined. Note some features of these citations. 
 First, their range. They touch almost every 
 event in the Lord's earthly life, from His birth 
 to His death. Especially where His Messiahship 
 is involved they are introduced. Matthew finds 
 Messiah in many places in the Old Testament 
 where we, looking no deeper than the surface, 
 would fail to discover Him. To Matthew the 
 older Scriptures are replete with adumbrations 
 and predictions of the promised one. He sees, or 
 seems to see, in the chosen people a Messianic 
 nation whose history and whose experience to 
 some degree foreshadow Him in whom every 
 prophecy and promise shall find its ample fulfill- 
 ment (cp. i. 22, 23 ; ii. 14, 15, 23, etc.). 
 
 Secondly, note their minuteness. The Old 
 
 4 
 
50 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Testament is applied to a great variety of inci- 
 dents and crises in the Saviour's life — e. g., His 
 birth (i. 23, cp. Isa. vii. 14) ; birthplace (ii. 6, cp. 
 Micah V. 2) ; flight into Egypt (ii. 13, cp. Hos. 
 xi. 1) ; Rachel weeping over her slaughtered 
 children (ii. 17, 18, cp. Jer. xxxi. 15, etc.). His 
 miracles of healing are declared to be a fulfillment 
 of prophecy (viii. 17, cp. Isa. liii. 4). His teach- 
 ing by parables is justified by Scripture (xiii. 13- 
 15, cp. Isa. vi. 9, 10). His public ministry is sanc- 
 tioned by the \Yord of God (xii. 17-21, cp. Isa. 
 xlii. 1-7). His triumphant entry into Jerusalem 
 was the accomplishment of prophetic Scripture 
 (xxi. 4, 5, cp. Zech. ix. 9). Mark and Luke also 
 record this incident, but do not quote Scripture ; 
 John does (cp. John xii. 15). His abandonment 
 by His disciples is likewise a fulfillment of Scrip- 
 ture (xxvi. 31, cp. Zech. xiii. 7). His betrayal 
 for thirty pieces of silver is also a fulfillment 
 (xxvii. 9, cp. Zech. xi. 12, 13). 
 
 These quotations establish the fact that Mes- 
 siah is the centml figure of the Old Testament 
 and the supreme object of that revelation. It is 
 obvious that Matthew's chief aim is to show that 
 the events in the life and ministry of the Lord 
 which he records occurred in accordance with 
 what the prophets had foretold respecting the 
 ^ Messiah. The formula Avith which he commonly 
 introduces his citation is ^^ That it might be ful- 
 
Gospel According to 3Iatthcw 51 
 
 filled which -was spoken through the prophet." 
 Matthew's has been well named '' The Gospel of 
 the fulfillment.'' 
 
 They show likewise how that from of old 
 Messiah's rejection by Israel was foreseen and 
 fiiithfully announced. They prove that from 
 birth to death the s^lorious King^ for whom the 
 people pretended to wait was to be disowned, 
 refused, misrepresented, calumniated, and finally 
 put to death by that nation to which He was more 
 particularly and peculiarly sent. The quotations 
 in Matthew strikingly exhibit the depravity and 
 malignity of men. The flight to Egypt; Rachel 
 rising from her tomb to Aveep over her slaugh- 
 tered children ; ^' He shall be called a Nazarene ;" 
 parables spoken that blind eyes might become 
 more blind, hard hearts harder; the rejected 
 stone become the head of the corner ; all show 
 how deep-seated is human depravity and how 
 malignant. 
 
 y. '^The kingdom of heaven." The an- 
 nouncement of its near approach was made both 
 by John the Baptist (iii. 2) and by the Lord 
 Jesus (iv. 17). The expression " the kingdom of 
 heaven " is found only in the First Gospel, and 
 here thirty-one times. Of the fifteen parables 
 recorded in Matthew all but three begin ^' The 
 kingdom of heaven is like" The corre- 
 sponding title "kingdom of God" occurs five 
 
52 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 times, and frequently in the other gospels and In 
 the epistles. Matthew's characteristic phrase is 
 "the kingdom of heaven/' There is no doubt 
 a slio-ht distinction between it and the other 
 
 CD 
 
 phrase, "kingdom of God,'' but it is aside from 
 tlie present purpose to discuss the difference. 
 Both are here treated as identical in significance. 
 What is meant by it? 
 
 "The kingdom of heaven" appears to have 
 been well understood by the Jews. Neither 
 John nor Jesus defines it. It needed no defini- 
 tion. Their hearers were familiar with the idea. 
 At Sinai God was pleased to say to Israel : " Ye 
 shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an 
 holy nation " (Ex. xix. 6). Israel's first national 
 constitution was a theocracy. God was their 
 King; they formed His kingdom. In the royal 
 covenant made with David (2 Sam. vii. ; Psa. 
 Ixxxix.) an imperishable throne is secured to 
 David's son. In Dan. ii. 44; vii. 13, 14, 18, a 
 world-wide kingdom is to be set up in connec- 
 tion with Messiah's advent. In all these places 
 the kingdom of God is associated with Israel. 
 The chosen people form its center. Gentiles are 
 to be under its sway, enjoy its blessings, and reap 
 its glorious benefits ; but Israel's place in the 
 kingdom is preeminent. 
 
 " The kingdom of heaven," therefore, is a 
 veritable I'ealm. Christ is its supreme Sovereign. 
 
Gospel According to Matthew 53 
 
 lie defines its nature and its limits. lie pre- 
 scribes its condition of entrance, its laws, its 
 privileges, and rewards. He predicts its history, 
 and its ultimate victory over all antagonism 
 (chapters v.-vii. ; xiii.) It is a perfectly righteous 
 rule ; it will embrace at length all the nations, 
 and the earth itself will share in its blessedness. 
 Under its rule all injustice, oppression, and strife 
 will cease, the evils of poverty be known no 
 more, and all men dwell together in peace. ^' The 
 kingdom of heaven,^' in its final triumph, will 
 be heaven ruling, and earth doing the will of 
 God as it is done in heaven (Matt. vi. 10.) 
 
 The Church and the kino^dom thouo^h inti- 
 mately associated are not indentical. The Church 
 is in the kingdom, but it does not bound its 
 limits. The kingdom is broader, more compre- 
 hensive than the Church. Christ is now " head 
 over all things to his body, the church" (Eph. i. 
 22, 23). His mediatorial authority commands 
 throughout the universe, controls nature, good 
 and bad men alike, evil spirits, and subjects them 
 to His purposes of redemption. Even now His 
 kingdom is wider than the Church. 
 
 The kingdom is not now fully manifested, nor 
 victorious. It has its mysteries (Matt. xiii. 11; 
 Mark iv. 11); i. e., it has its secrets which are 
 not revealed to all, which are understood only by 
 its true subjects. The seven parables of chapter 
 
54 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 xiii. deal with these mysteries. They disclose its 
 progress in the world, and its growth ; they show 
 how good and evil co-mingle in it, and how the 
 final separation will be effected. They show, 
 too, how it will come at length to universality 
 and victory, and fill the whole earth with blessed- 
 ness and peace. 
 
 This kingdom Christ proclaimed as " at hand,'' 
 for the King Himself was here, and stood before 
 the men who asked when it should appear, de- 
 claring that it was then among them (Luke xvii. 
 
 21). 
 
 The kingdom was first presented to the right- 
 ful heirs, the people of Israel. But they re- 
 fused the offer, rejected the King, and finally 
 crucified Him. In Matt. viii. 12 ; xxi. 43, Jesus 
 announced that it should be taken from them, 
 and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits 
 thereof. The announcement deeply offended the 
 rulers, and they sought to lay hands on Him. It 
 is now found only among believers who are taken 
 from among the peoples of earth, and who en- 
 joy its privileges and blessings. Israel in the 
 meantime suffers the age-long dispersion outside 
 the kingdom and denied its blessings, though 
 still kept separate from the nations of the world. 
 The day will come, however, when they will 
 again rejoice in Jehovah's favor, wdien they 
 shall cry with glad acclaim, '^ Blessed is he that 
 
Gospel According to Matthew 55 
 
 coinetli in the name of the Lord.'^ Tlicn tlie 
 chosen people will once more take their place as 
 the people of God, the center of blessin<^ for 
 the whole world, and the kingdom be indeed 
 '^come." 
 
 YI. The miracles in Matthew exhibit the Mes- 
 sianic character of the Gospel. The whole num- 
 ber of miracles recorded by the evangelists is 
 variously stated ; by some there are thirty-five, 
 by others, thirty-three. Of these one is common 
 to the four gospels — viz., the feeding of the five 
 thousand. Several are given by two or three of 
 the writers, and several (seventeen) by one alone. 
 Matthew has three that are peculiar to him — viz., v 
 opening the eyes of two blind men (ix. 27-31) ; 
 Peter's walking on the water (xiv. 24-29) ; and 
 the coin taken from the mouth of the fish (xvii. 
 24-27). That these recorded miracles constitute 
 but a small portion of all that were wrought by 
 the Lord the gospels abundantly attest {e. g. 
 Matt. iv. 23, 24; xii. 15, 16; xv. 30; John xx. 
 30, 31, etc.). 
 
 It is certain that out of all Christ's super- ^ 
 natural works Matthew has made a careful selec- 
 tion, and has recorded chiefly those that illus- 
 trate and enforce his main subject. In chapters 
 viii., ix., he masses together no less than ten mira- 
 cles, about one half of the whole number found in 
 his Gospel. These ten miracles are remarkable for 
 
56 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 their arrangement and their variety. They cover 
 nearly the whole field of our Lord's supernatural 
 works. They embrace every form of cure, as 
 leprosy, palsy, fever, blindness, dumbness, demo- 
 niacal possession, control of the forces of nature, 
 and resurrection from the dead. Then, too, the 
 various methods Christ employed to eiFect mi- 
 raculous results are found — e. g., His touch. His 
 word of command, near at hand, or at a distance. 
 Moreover, the order observed in the narrative is 
 noteworthy. It differs materially from that of 
 Mark and Luke. Both the latter begin with 
 the casting out of the demon in the synagogue at 
 Capernaum (Mark i. 23 ; Luke iv. 33) ; Matthew 
 begins with the healing of a leper (viii. 2). Mark 
 inserts two other cures before recording this of 
 the leper (i. 23, 30). It is demonstrable that the 
 cure of the leper was not the first miracle 
 wrought by the Lord Jesus. The order accord- 
 ing to Mark is, the demoniac, Peter's wife's 
 mother, the leper : according to Luke, it is the 
 demoniac, the mother of Peter's wife, the draught 
 of fishes, the leper. Matthew forsakes the ex- 
 act order to follow a logical one. He has a defi- 
 nite plan, and supreme end in view. His plan 
 coiitrols his selection and his arrangement. He 
 sets aside temporal sequence in order the more 
 cogently and convincingly to press his central 
 theme. Jesus is the Messiah, the king of Israel, 
 
Gospel According to Matthew 57 
 
 in whom the promises to David and to Abraham 
 find their accomplishment. Therefore, he niar- 
 slials his supernatnral proofs in solid array. 
 Only Jehovah can cure the leprosy ; only He can 
 touch the foul malady and contract no taint. This 
 Jesus does by His own almighty word, and not by 
 any delegated ])ower ; therefore He is the Lord. 
 But if Israel will not receive this impressive testi- 
 mony, let another witness be introduced. A 
 gentile and soldier intercedes in behalf of his 
 sick servant. He is a Roman officer whose faith 
 in Jesus is so perfect and whose confidence in His 
 power is so complete that a word alone needs to 
 be spoken and the disease will instantly quit its 
 hold on the sufferer. For as his servants come 
 and go at his bidding with military promptness 
 and obedience, so sickness with equal promptness 
 obeys the Lord. A more concrete and convinc- 
 ing proof of Jesus' Messiahship could not well 
 be furnished. Even Jesus " marveled.'' Only 
 twice in the gospels do we read of His astonish- 
 ment ; here at ^' so great faith ; " at Nazareth 
 ^' because of their unbelief" (Mark vi. 6). 
 
 In the course of this marvelous record Mat- 
 thew quotes from Isaiah liii. 4 — the great Mes- 
 sianic chapter — the striking words, '' Himself 
 took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses" 
 (viii. 17). There is no hint in the gospels that 
 Christ was ever sick, Himself. Weary, hungry, 
 
58 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 thirsty, He often was, as we know ; but not sick. 
 We never read that any one ever died when He 
 was present. The only funeral He is ever re- 
 corded to have encountered He changed into a 
 scene of life and joy (Luke vii. 11-17). Into 
 human anguish and suffering He entered with a 
 sympathy all His own. From human woe He did 
 not stand apart ; from sin He did — He kept the 
 distance of holiness itself from every touch and 
 stain of it. With His word of authority He bade 
 disease and infirmities depart. He grappled with 
 them, " took " them, ^^ bare '^ them Himself. And 
 He can still be " touched with a feeling of our in- 
 firmities'' (Heb. iv. 15, 16). 
 
 The last miracle recorded by Matthew before 
 the crucifixion is the withering of the barren fig 
 tree (xxi. 19). The first, as we have seen, was 
 the healing of the leper. Both were signs to the 
 people of Israel. He would heal them if they 
 would but turn to Him with all their heart. 
 He would cleanse them of their deadly sickness, 
 their foul pollution, of which leprosy is a most 
 impressive type. But they refused His gracious 
 offers, and instead passed the sentence of death 
 upon Him. Their dreadful doom was pronounced 
 symbolically when He so solemnly addressed the 
 fig tree. Not many hours thereafter He said : 
 " Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. 
 For I say unto you. Ye shall not see me hence- 
 
Gospel According to Matthew 59 
 
 fortli, till ye shall say, Blessed is be that cometh 
 in the name of the Lord" (xxiii. 38, 39). 
 
 VII. The parables exhibit the Messianic char- 
 acter of the Lord Jesus. There are in all fifteen 
 parables found in the First Gospel, of which ten 
 are peculiar to it, i, c, recorded here alone. 
 Each of these ten displays with greater or less 
 clearness the authority and glory of the Prince- 
 Messiah. Four of them are inserted in chapter 
 xiii. — viz., ^'The wheat and tares," " the hid treas- 
 ure," " the pearl," ^^ the drawnet." The others 
 are, "the unmerciful servant" (xviii. 23-34); 
 " laborers in the vineyard " (xx. 1-16) ; " the two 
 sons " (xxi. 28-31) ; " marriage of the king's 
 son" (xxii. 1-14); "the ten virgins" (xxv. 
 1-13) ; " the talents " (xxv. 14-30).' 
 
 No one can study these parables without per- 
 ceiving with what singular felicity and beauty they 
 contribute to the main design of the Spirit in this 
 Gospel. Kingly authority is manifest in almost 
 all of them. It is a sovereign who sends forth 
 " his angels " to gather the tares into bundles for 
 burning ; it is the angels likewise who separate 
 the bad from the good, the righteous from the 
 wicked, in the drawnet. It is the king who 
 judges the unmerciful servant. It is the master 
 of the house who hires laborers for his vineyard. 
 
 * The parables on "the mysteries of the kingdom" are 
 considered in the followinor section. 
 
60 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 It is the king who visits the banquet to see the 
 guests. It is the royal bridegroom whom the 
 virgins go forth to meet. It is the lord of the 
 servants W'ho reckons Avith them in the talents. 
 In the husbandmen (xxi. 33-44) Matthew desig- 
 nates the owner as " householder/^ or master of 
 the house, while Mark calls him a " man/' and 
 Luke " a certain man." The arrangement of the 
 parables in Matthew suggests the same great idea. 
 They begin with the sower scattering the seed of 
 the kingdom, and close with the talents, the ad- 
 judication of the last day. 
 
 VIII. The discourses accord with the general 
 plan of the inspired writer of the First Gospel. 
 Of these there are five which in a peculiar w^ay are 
 fitted into the narrative. They are, the sermon 
 on the mount ; instructions given to the twelve ; 
 the seven parables of the mysteries of the king- 
 dom ; instruction with reference to the treatment 
 of those who err ; and the Olivet prophecy. 
 
 There are other and vitally important discourses 
 found in Matthew besides those above mentioned, 
 such as — e. g., that on John the Baptist (chapter 
 xi.) ; Christ's defense of Himself againstjthe ac- 
 cusations of the Pharisees (xii.) ; on defilement 
 (xv.) ; on false teaching, and the test of true dis- 
 cipleship (xvi.);.the greatest in the kingdom 
 (xx.) ; the rejection of Israel (xxi.) ; the resur- 
 rection (xxii.) ; w^oes pronounced against the 
 
Gospel According to Matthew 61 
 
 Pharisees (xxiii.). If to tlicse we add the para- 
 bles, instriietions, and predictions contained in 
 Matthew, it will be recognized how large a place 
 Christ's addresses fill in this Gospel. The five 
 referred to are selected for more particular notice 
 because each of them closes with the stateriient, 
 " and when Jesus had ended these saying " — a 
 statement that indicates both a conclusion and a 
 transition. 
 
 1. The sermon on the mount (chapters v.-vii.). 
 It is the King's proclamation, His royal manifesto. 
 In it He publishes the principles and laws of His 
 kino-dom, and describes the character of its sub- 
 jects. In it, as elsewhere. He speaks with au- 
 thority. Six times He employs the formula of 
 the supreme lawgiver, ^' But I say unto you" 
 (v. 22, 28, 32, 34, 39, 44). Throughout this 
 great sermon He speaks, acts, bears Himself 
 like a king. 
 
 A. The beatitudes (v. 1-16). The beatitudes 
 are not independent propositions, nor axioms. 
 They are knit together by the closest logical ties. 
 One grows out of another by inward necessity 
 and irresistible sequence. There are nine in 
 all (though some hold there are but seven, the 
 last two being considered as not strictly beati- 
 tudes). 
 
 They fall into three classes or groups — four in 
 
62 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 the first group (verses 3-6) ; three in the second 
 (verses 7-9) ; two in the third (verses 10-12). 
 The foundation of all is the first beatitude (verse 
 3), ^^ Blessed are the poor in spirit : for theirs in 
 the kingdom of heaven/' It is the door into the 
 kingdom. It means neither penury, nor self- 
 imposed poverty, nor pusillanimity. It means 
 spiritual bankruptcy. One enters the kingdom 
 as an insolvent, as one who has come to the end 
 of self, as one who comes to the Lord Jesus as a 
 total bankrupt. 
 
 The realization of the destitute state leads to 
 mourning (verse 4) — sorrow, broken-heartedness, 
 repentance ; and repentance produces meekness, 
 the docile, teachable spirit (verse 5). These three 
 prime beatitudes are succeeded by an intense de- 
 sire after righteousness, i. e., complete conformity 
 to the laws and principles of the kingdom, which 
 is the fourth in this first series (verse 6). The 
 first three are marked by the degrees of a descend- 
 ing scale, low, lower, lowest. 
 
 The next three (verses 7-9) are in the ascending 
 scale. The subjects of the kingdom become trans- 
 formed into its spirit, they exhibit the mind of 
 Christ. 
 
 One characteristic feature of the King is mercy, 
 and His subjects are merciful (verse 7). 
 
 The King is holy, pure ; the subjects become 
 pure in heart (verse 8). The King is peaceful, the 
 
i 
 
 Gospel According to Matthew 63 
 
 Prince of Peace ; the subjects are peacemakers 
 (verse 9). 
 
 The hist two verses (10, 11), reveal the treatment 
 of the subjects of the kingdom by the world ; 
 they are hated, persecuted. Let anyone possess 
 and display to unbelieving men the true spirit 
 and principles of the kingdom, and the world 
 will speedily show its dislike and enmity. 
 
 The subjects have solemn duties and responsi- 
 bilities toward society, the world. They are 
 ''salt'' (verse 13), to preserve; 'Might" (verse 
 14) to illumine. 
 
 B. Principles of the kingdom contrasted with 
 the laws of Moses (v. 17-48). The righteousness 
 of the subjects of the kingdom must vastly ex- 
 ceed the riirhteousness of the scribes and Phari- 
 sees. The principles are applied to murder, adul- 
 tery, divorce, oaths, vindictiveness. The right- 
 eousness wdiich Christ requires in the subjects of 
 His kingdom is not something, external, not an 
 outward conformity to the bare letter of the law, 
 but it is internal, it touches the seat of the affec- 
 tions, the will, and the motives of the soul. It 
 finds its realization in love, the love which is but 
 a dim reflection of the love of God. 
 
 C. Duties of the subjects of the kingdom 
 (vi. 1-18). These are distributed into three 
 groups : almsgiving, prayer, fasting. The teach- 
 ing relates to false and true prayer, then a model 
 
64 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 prayer is given. There are seven petitions in it 
 — the first three relate to God, and are coordi- 
 nate ; the last four to man, joined by particles of 
 sequence. The genuineness of the conclusion, 
 " For thine is the kingdom,'^ etc., is seriously 
 questioned, but it is noteworthy that it is found 
 only in Matthew, and is kingly. 
 
 D. Duty of the subjects of the kingdom with 
 respect to secular affairs (vi. 19-34). Two 
 things made prominent — viz., treasures and 
 anxieties. 
 
 E. The subjects of the kingdom are not to be 
 censorious, but yet to discriminate ; to do so, they 
 are to seek heavenly guidance (vii. 1-12). 
 
 F. Exhortation to enter the kingdom (vii. 
 13-23). Before men are set the "two waj's" of 
 life and of death ; Christ guides to the way of 
 life ; " false prophets " guide to the way of 
 (ieath. 
 
 G. Illustrations in conclusion (vii. 24—27) : 
 the house on the rock ; the house on the sand. 
 
 Summary of the Sermon. 
 
 I. Conversion is the door of entrance into the 
 kingdom. 
 II. Relations of converted men to God. 
 
 III. Relations of converted men to their fellow- 
 
 men. 
 
 IV. Converted men to live the separated life. 
 
Gospel According to Matthew 65 
 
 2. The Twelve: Their Choice and Their 
 Charge (chapter x.). 
 
 A. The agents chosen, and their names (x. 
 1-4). 
 
 B. The agents commissioned (x. 5-15). 
 
 («) The sphere of their mission (verses 5, 6). 
 It is strictly confined to Jews ; gentiles and even 
 Samaritans are excluded. 
 
 (6) Burden of their message (verse 7) the king- 
 dom proclaimed. 
 
 (c) Supernatural authentication of their mission 
 (verse 8). 
 
 {d) Their maintenance (verses 9, 10). 
 
 {e) Responsibility of hearers (verses 11-15). 
 
 C. Dangers of their mission, instructions 
 touching them (verses 16-23). 
 
 The agents will be (a) exposed to peril, {h) ar- 
 rested, (c) scourged, (c/) betrayed, {e) hated, (/) 
 persecuted, {g) done to death. Their behavior 
 was to be (a) prudent ; (6) harmless ; (c) trustful ; 
 ((I) flight, when possible. 
 
 D. Fellow^ship with Christ in suffering a 
 badge of discipleship, and a pledge of salvation 
 (verses 24-39). 
 
 (a) Their master was persecuted, they are to 
 expect no less. 
 
 (6) They are to be full of courage. 
 
 (c) To declare his whole counsel. 
 
 (d) To fear God alone. 
 
QQ Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 (c) Shall be kept safe and sound for glory. 
 
 (/) Boldly to confess Plim. 
 
 {g) To love and honor Him above all else be- 
 side. 
 
 E. The majestic encouragement (verses 40-42). 
 They represent Him. They carry His message. 
 Their cause is His. He reckons treatment of 
 them as treatment of Himself; for He and they 
 are identified. The pain in the extremity of the 
 body flies to the head, is felt by the head. Christ 
 and His agents are one. 
 
 While these weighty instructions were primarily 
 addressed to the twelve apostles in the first in- 
 stance, and contemplated a special mission to the 
 people of Israel, nevertheless the great principles 
 herein embodied, the duties, the fortitude, the 
 prudence and steadfastness inculcated, are for all 
 missionaries and for all time. The world's hos- 
 tility to Christ and His servants, the rejection of 
 the testimony of God by the majority of men, and 
 hatred for the chosen witnesses of the truth, con- 
 tinue unabated down to the epoch when the Son 
 of man shall come in His glory. 
 
 3. The seven great parables of the mysteries 
 of the kingdom of heaven (chapter xiii.). 
 
 Brief notices of them only can ])e here taken. 
 {a) The number seven is significant. It is the 
 number of perfection, of completeness. These 
 parables present us with the mysteries of the 
 
Gospel According to Matthew G7 
 
 kingdom from various sides, so tliat we thereby 
 gain a comprehensive understanding of its nature, 
 progress, and issue, (b) Six open with the same y 
 words, " The kingdom of heaven is like — /' The 
 first omits the words, for it is introductory. It 
 sets forth Christ Himself as the sower. After His 
 initiatory work (which does not end with His 
 public ministry) human responsibility in connec- 
 tion with the kingdom has its place and share, 
 and therefore the words referred to are intro- 
 duced, (c) Here is another instance of Mat- 
 thew's topical method. As in the ten miracles 
 of chapters viii., ix., he here likewise masses to- 
 gether seven great parables that he may all the 
 more convincingly press his central theme. 
 Jesus is the Prophet of God, the King of the 
 kingdom, the Sovereign of the gospel dispensa- 
 tion. He introduces it, guides it, and discloses 
 its marvelous history. (c?) The first four of 
 these parables were addressed to the multitudes ; 
 the remaining three to His disciples alone. The 
 interpretation of the sower and of the tares was 
 given to them also (verse 36 ; Mark iv. 10). Christ 
 veils His truth under parabolic forms that the 
 unbelieving people who had ])redetermined 
 neither to see nor hear Messiah's testimony 
 might remain in judicial blindness, as Isaiah had - 
 predicted (verses 13-15). He so far respects 
 man's free will that He will not force him to be- 
 
68 Studies in the Four^ Gospels 
 
 lieve. Tims these parables become like the 
 wilderness cloud. They have two sides or faces, 
 one bright and gracious toward believers, the 
 other dark and threatening toward the rejecters 
 of the truth, (c) They are prophetic. They 
 cover the whole period that lies between the first 
 and second advents of the Saviour. They paint 
 in sharpest outline the main features of our dis- 
 pensation from its beginning to its consummation. 
 They reveal that the gospel contemplates the 
 w^hole race, that the kingdom is no longer re- 
 stricted to one nation, as was Judaism ; that it is 
 universal in its character and claims, and is 
 offered to all without distinction. (/) They do 
 not affirm that the race as such shall enter the 
 kingdom. Three of them positively deny that 
 even a majority of the race will become identi- 
 fied with the kingdom. The sower does not 
 warrant the expectation of a universal harvest 
 from the seed sown. It is but a small propor- 
 tion that brings forth fruit ; and even then the 
 yield is varied — '^ some thirty, some sixty, and 
 some an hundred fold.'^ Both the Avheat and the 
 tares, "the children of the kingdom, and the 
 children of the evil one," grow together till the 
 harvest ; and the harvest is the consummation of 
 the age. The net passes through the waters and 
 incloses of every kind ; but when drawn to the 
 shore — the consummation of the age — angels 
 
Gospel According to Matthew G9 
 
 sever the wicked from the righteous, (r/) The 
 kingdom shall })ecome great and influential, as a 
 mustard seed expands into a tree. It will per- 
 meate society like leaven. It shall be " found " 
 by the individual, who joyfully parts with all 
 tliat he may possess it. It shall be sought 
 eagerly and persistently, as one who seeks a 
 priceless pearl. That is, the kingdom is viewed 
 both as national and individual, as external and 
 internal, as visible and invisible, as earthly and 
 heavenly. It is " like " many things. It is not 
 define d, ^t is onl y described . Accordingly, in 
 these seven parables our Lord deals with its 
 '^ mysteries," with these alone. Much He reveals 
 of its nature, history, and issue ; more He con- 
 ceals. But in so doing He is seen to be perfectly 
 familiar vn\h all its phases and forms and 
 spheres. He is a prophet and more than a 
 ]irophet ; He is the King of the kingdom ; its 
 Founder and its Lord. 
 
 4. Dignity and duties of the subjects of the 
 kingdom (chapter xviii.). 
 
 (1) The kingdom belongs only to the childlike 
 (verses 1-14). 
 
 {a) The greatest in it are the childlike, vs. 1-4. 
 
 {b) Their place in it is exalted and blessed, 
 verses 5, 6. 
 
 (c) Offenses against them are dangerous, verses 
 7-11. 
 
70 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 (d) Divine and loving care of them is assured, 
 12-14. 
 
 (2) Faithful and tender discipline is to be .ex- 
 ercised (15-20). • 
 
 (3) Limits of forgiveness are illustrated (21- 
 35). 
 
 5. The Olivet prophecy (chapters xxiv., xxv.). 
 
 Mark and Luke record this great prediction 
 also, but the account in Matthew is much fuller. 
 We learn from Mark xiii. 3, that it was addressed 
 primarily to four of the apostles, Peter, James, 
 John, and Andrew. It is extremely difficult, if 
 not altogether impossible, to separate its various 
 parts from each other, so closely are they bound 
 together. The following is rather a designation 
 of some of its features than an analysis of its 
 structure. 
 
 (1) The occasion of the prophecy (xxiv. 1, 2). 
 Some of His disciples called His attention to 
 
 the beauty of the temple, its massive stones, and 
 the offerings brought to its altar. The solemn 
 announcement of its total demolition was the only 
 reply He vouchsafed. 
 
 (2) Request for further information (verse 3). 
 The question the disciples asked Him on Olivet 
 was twofold : (a) When shall the temple be 
 overthrown ? [b) " What shall be the sign of 
 thy coming and the end of the age ?" To both 
 
Gospel According to ]\[atthcLo 71 
 
 these anxious inquiries our Lord makes answer 
 in the majestic discourse of these chapters. 
 
 (3) Prediction of the fall of Jerusalem and 
 the second advent of the Lord Jesus Christ 
 (xxiv. 4-31). 
 
 (a) The beginning of sorrows, verses 4-8. All 
 this, trying as it might be, would not be " the 
 end.^^ 
 
 (6) Harsher sufferings would succeed the sor- 
 rows, verses 9-14. The Lord's servants would 
 be hated and killed ; false prophets would arise 
 and lead many astray ; iniquity abound, love re- 
 lax ; the gospel be proclaimed to the inhabited 
 world as a witness ; then " the end.'' 
 
 (c) Portents, persecutions, false Messiahs, and 
 unparalleled tribulation aw^ait the disciples and 
 the -svorld, verses 15-28. The abomination of 
 desolation set up ; trouble unprecedented ; the 
 shortened days ; the lightning-like coming of the 
 Son of man. These are events of the end-time. 
 
 (d) The great advent, verses 29-31. Cosmical 
 convulsions ; mourning of earth's tribes ; gather- 
 ing of the elect. 
 
 (4) Practical application of the prophecy to 
 the people of God (verses 32-51). 
 
 (a) The parable of the fig tree, verses 32-35. 
 (6) Time of the advent unknown and unex- 
 pected, verses 36-42. Watch ! 
 
 (c) The advent thief-like, verses 43, 44. Ready ! 
 
72 Studies i)i the Four Gospels 
 
 (d) The stewards of God, verses 45-51 . Judg- 
 ment ! 
 
 (5) Parable of the ten virgins (xxv. 1-13). 
 
 (6) Parable of the talents (verses 14-30). 
 
 (7) Judgment of all the nations (verses 31- 
 46). 
 
 Two supreme objects occupy the field of this 
 marvelous prophecy, one of which lies near to 
 the divine speaker, the oth.er remote from Him 
 in point of time. But both are perfectly clear 
 to His omniscient vision. The near is the fall of 
 Jerusalem, the remote is His second advent. 
 The first took place within forty years after the 
 prediction — viz., A. D. 70 ; the second is still 
 future. The one was restricted to a very limited 
 area, though it affected the whole world in its 
 issues ; the other embraces the planet. 
 
 Some of the predictions apply to both these 
 events, but in different degrees. The fall of 
 Jerusalem is insignificant in comparison with the 
 coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Yet there is 
 a striking resemblance between the two events ; 
 the destruction of the holy city prefigures the 
 more tremendous scenes w^hich are to accompany 
 the advent of the Lord. The one answers to the 
 other as type and antitype. 
 
 To illustrate : In chapter xxiv. 14 our Lord 
 says, " And this gospel of the kingdom shall be 
 preached in all the world for a witness unto all 
 
Gospel According to Matthew 73 
 
 nations ; and then shall the end come." That 
 this prediction was fulfilled before Jerusalem's 
 destruction Paul attests (Col. i. 6, 23). The like 
 world-wide proclamation is immediately to pre- 
 cede the final end (Rev. xiv. 6, 7). So likewise 
 the uncqualed tribulation spoken of in xxiv. 21 
 appears to belong to both the events referred to. 
 That scenes of suffering, horror, and crime 
 almost indescribable, took place at the siege and 
 capture of Jerusalem by the Roman army is well 
 known. But that another " time of trouble," an 
 unparalleled tribulation immediately precedes 
 the advent is certain (cp. Matt. xxiv. 21, 29; 
 Dan. xii. 1, 2; Jer. xxx. 7). Israel and the 
 gentiles alike Avill be in that " tribulation." 
 --7ln these five discourses our Lord takes the 
 character of lawgiver, king, and judge. So it 
 had been foretold of the Messiah : ^' For the 
 Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the 
 Lord is our king; he will save us" (Isa. xxxiii. 
 22). The twofold office of prophet and king 
 are very prominent in Matthew. In the dis- 
 courses no less than in the deeds, Matthew pre- 
 sents Jesus of Nazareth to us as the promised 
 Messiah, the King, and the Prophet appointed 
 and anointed of God. At the close of chapter 
 XXV. we find these words, " And it came to pass, 
 when Jesus had finished all these sayings." His 
 public teaching was now " finished," and He ad- 
 
74 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 dresses himself to the solemn event next await- 
 ing, the cross. According to John, much 
 precious teaching was given by Him after this ; 
 but it was confined to the little circle of the 
 apostles, and was, we may venture to say, 
 private. His office of prophet to the chosen 
 people was over, and no further word does He 
 speak to them. His discourses began with the 
 sermon on the mount; they end with the 
 prophecy on the mount. Between these two 
 mounts what matchless teaching is found ! 
 Verily, " Never man spake like this man." 
 
 IX. Other peculiarities found in Matthew in- 
 dicate the same general purpose of the Gospel. 
 
 1. Matthew gives some prominence to the gen- 
 tiles, intimating that they are to share in the 
 blessedness of Messiah's presence and reign. Of 
 the four women he mentions in the genealogy 
 two at least are gentiles, Rahab of Jericho, of a 
 proscribed race ; and Ruth, a Moabitess, of an 
 equally abhorred people. An Egyptian or an 
 Edomite might enter the congregation of Israel 
 at the third generation, but a Moabite not till 
 the tenth generation (Deut. xxiii. 3-8). In 
 chapter i. the wise men ask, " Where is he that 
 is born King of the Jews?'' In chapter viii. 
 the Lord announces the reception of multitudes 
 into the kingdom of heaven while the "sons" 
 of the kingdom shall be casi out. Isaiah is 
 
Gosjjcl According to 3Iatthew 75 
 
 quoted as predicting that Messiah shall "declare 
 judgment to tlie gentiles/^ and that " in his 
 name shall the gentiles trust'' (xii. 18, 21). 
 
 2. The Church appears in the First Gospel. It 
 is not mentioned in the others. In chapter xvi. 
 18, 19, it is named, its foundation is declared 
 (certainly not Peter, but the " rock,'' Christ 
 Himself) and its victory over the power of evil 
 assured. In chapter xviii. the conduct of be- 
 lievers tovv^ard erring members of the Church is 
 prescribed. In both instances it is closely asso- ^ 
 ciated with the kingdom of heaven, and yet is 
 distinguished from it. In chapter xiii. its 
 prophetic history is traced under the title of the 
 
 " mysteries of the kingdom of heaven.'^ Over 
 the kingdom and the Church alike he is Sov- 
 ereign, controlling and guiding all, and judging 
 all. 
 
 3. Matthew beyond any of the other evangelists 
 tells us of Jewish enmity pursuing the Lord up 
 to the very cross, and beyond it. He alone tells 
 of the exact price paid to the traitor, and the 
 purchase of the potter's field with money which 
 the guilty suicide flung from him in his awful 
 despair (xxvii. 5-10). He alone records the 
 impious prayer of the Saviour's murderers, " His 
 blood be on us, and our children " (xxvii. 25). 
 It is Matthew, and Matthew only, who tells us 
 of the sealing of the stone, and of the setting of 
 
l^ 
 
 76 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 the watch, at the door of the sepulcher. This 
 was done at the request and suggestion of the 
 elders and priests of Israel. In their blind rage, 
 their uncontrollable fury, they name their Mes- 
 siah " That deceiver ! '^ If they can, they will 
 prevent His resurrection, they will shut Him in 
 his tomb forever ! At the opening of his Gospel 
 Matthew relates the attempt of Herod against 
 the young child life. At the close, the same 
 enmity stands guard at the grave of the martyred 
 Messiah with sword and spear. Nay, their 
 malignity tries to circumvent the resurrection 
 itself, for they bribe the Roman soldiers with 
 large money to lie about the disappearance of 
 His body. 
 
 4. Yet in the death they so shamelessly secured 
 He was conqueror. The quaking earth, the 
 descent of the mighty angel before whose re- 
 splendent presence the Avatchers became as dead 
 men (xxviii. 2-4), and the resurrection of many 
 of the saints (xxvii. 51, 52), tell of one who is 
 both Lord and Christ. But this very fact 
 renders the guilt of the blinded nation all the 
 more heinous and dreadful. 
 
 5. The terms "righteous" and "righteousness," 
 which frequently occur in Matthew, betoken the 
 nature of Messiah's kingdom and His character 
 as King (iii. 15; v. 6, 10, 20, etc.). Note how 
 significant is the presence of these two words in 
 
Gospel According to Matthew 77 
 
 Matthew and their absence in Luke (Matt. v. 10, 
 cp. Luke vi. 22 ; Matt. vi. 33, cp. Luke xii. 31, 
 etc.). In Matthew we read of the " blood of 
 righteous Abel " (xxiii. 35) ; in Luke, " the blood 
 of Abel'' (xi. 51). In Matthew the King pro- 
 nounces judgment on the guilty city (xxiii. 32— 
 39). In Luke He weeps over the doomed place 
 (xix. 41). In the First Gospel there is no mention 
 of tears. The one is the gospel of the Prince 
 and Judge, the other that of the Son of man, the 
 Friend of sinners. 
 
 6. Finally, the words employed by the evangel- ,- 
 ists to signify the death of the Lord Jesus Christ 
 mark the distinctive features of each, and har- 
 monize with singular exactness with the Spirit's 
 aim in these gospels. Matthew's very expressive 
 term (literally) is, ^'He dismissed His spirit" 
 (xxvii. 50). By a conscious and voluntary act. 
 He sent His spirit away. It is regal, sovereign 
 action that is indicated by Matthew's pregnant 
 word. Mark and Luke use the same term to 
 express His death — viz., " He expired ; " " He 
 breathed out his life " (Mark xv. 37 ; Luke xxiii. 
 46). It is very remarkable, and no small proof 
 of the inspiration of the very words selected to 
 denote Christ's act of dying, that the term found 
 in Mark and Luke is quite diiferent from that 
 employed to describe the death of mere men. 
 For example, in Acts v. 5, 10 Ananias and Sap- 
 
78 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 phira " gave up the ghost " (R. Y.) ; in like 
 manner, Herod "gave up the ghost" (Acts xii. 
 23). In these instances an altogether different 
 term is employed; they died. The word of 
 Mark and Luke is used only of the Lord Jesus. 
 John's term differs from those of the other three; 
 "He delivered up- his spirit" (xix. 30). The 
 act was free, spontaneous — He delivered over His 
 own spirit. " No man taketh it [my life] from 
 me. I have power to lay it down, and I have 
 power to take it again" (John x. 18). This 
 same great truth seems to be taught by the 
 apostle, "He gave (up) himself" (Gal. ii. 20; 
 Eph. V. 2, 25 ; 1 Pet. ii. 23). In John it is the 
 supreme act of the Son of God that is made 
 prominent. In Matthew He is the King, the 
 Almighty Sovereign ; therefore with royal au- 
 thority He dismisses His spirit. In Mark and 
 Luke, He is the servant of Jehovah and the Son 
 of man, the Kinsman-Redeemer ; therefore He 
 expires, He breathes out His life, for His work is 
 done. In John He is the Son of God ; therefore 
 He Himself surrenders His spirit. 
 
 Summary of Contents of Mcdihew. 
 
 I. The King's birth, chapters i., ii. 
 
 II. The kingdom proclaimed, iii.-vii. 
 
 III. The King's ways and works, viii.-xii. 
 
 IV. The mysteries of the kingdom, xiii.-xx. 
 
Gospel According to Matthew 79 
 
 V. The King rejected, xxi.-xxiii. 
 VI. The coming and judgment of the King, 
 xxiv., xxv\ 
 VII. Salvation throngli the death and resurrec- 
 tion of the King, xxvi.-xxviii. 
 
THE 
 
 GOSPEL ACCOEDING TO MAEK 
 
THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARK 
 
 Of the four gospels, Mark has been the least 
 appreciated. Perhaps because it is the shortest. 
 Many appear to regard it as a sort of abridgment 
 of Matthew. Others write as if nothing remains 
 for the expounder but to " note variations." In 
 consequence, its place is almost a humble one. 
 Happily, in recent expositions, a more just ap- 
 preciation of its importance and worth is found. 
 The Second Gospel has a beauty and force that is 
 all its own. The mighty Servant of God, who 
 is here so graphically presented to us, is no less 
 attractive in His tireless ministry than in His 
 royal prerogatives and saving power. The girded 
 One is as lovely to the true heart as the arrayed 
 One. 
 
 I. The author. The title is : The Gospel ac- 
 corrling to 3Iark. The words express the belief 
 of the whole primitive church. There is not a 
 dissentient voice. As far back as the history of the 
 New Testament canon can be traced, the author- 
 ship of the Second Gospel is ascribed to Mark, and 
 to no other. Twice he is called " John, whose sur- 
 name is Mark'^ (Acts xii. 12, 25). John was his 
 
 83 
 
 k 
 
84 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Hebrew name, Mark, his Roman. The latter 
 seems to have become his only name. He was 
 not an apostle, though closely associated with the 
 apostles. He was the assistant of Paul and 
 Barnabas (Acts xiii. 5), and a relative of the 
 latter (Col. iv. 10). Afterwards he w^as the 
 fellow-laborer of Peter (1 Pet. v. 13). 
 
 II. The Second Gospel, according to ancient 
 testimony, is substantially that preached by 
 Peter. One of the earliest writers (Papias) says, 
 " Mark was the interpreter of Peter." Another 
 (Irenseus), ^^ He was the disciple and interpreter 
 of Peter,'^ and adds, " He gave forth to us in 
 writing the things which were preached by 
 Peter." This last sentence seems to be an ex- 
 planation of the word ^^interpreter." Others 
 bear the like witness. 
 
 Internal evidence supports this tradition. In- 
 stead of being put prominently forward as in the 
 other gospels, in this Peter falls as much as pos- 
 sible in the background. Here we learn that the 
 house at Capernaum into which Jesus withdrew 
 was that of Simon and Andrew ; Matthew and 
 Luke mention Simon's name alone. Here Ave are 
 told that Peter first noticed the withered condi- 
 tion of the fig tree which the word of the Lord 
 had blasted ; here he is singled out as the most 
 culpable of those taken with the Lord into the 
 garden ; '' Simon, sleepest thou ? Couldest not 
 
Gosj)d According to Mark 85 
 
 thou watch one hour?'' Tlie account of his 
 denial of Jesus reads like one who was present, 
 and who saw it all. In the message of the angel 
 his name occurs, " Tell His disciples and Peter 
 that He goeth before you into Galilee." Such 
 touches, slight as they may appear to be, are 
 evidence that this Gospel is that of an eyewit- 
 ness, and no doubt the witness was Peter himself. 
 It is quite possible that the apostle referred es- 
 pecially to Mark, as the penman of his Gospel, 
 when he wrote, ^' I will endeavor that ye may 
 be able after my decease to have these things 
 always in remembrance" (2 Pet. i. 15). 
 
 III. Mark adheres closely to the chronological 
 order of the events. He records them just as 
 they successively took place. Luke is more 
 strictly the historian. Matthew is somewhat 
 topical. Mark follows faithfully the temporal 
 sequence of the public ministry. In Matthew 
 Jesus tests Israel. In Mark He serves Israel ; 
 and the service is traced from first to last as it 
 was rendered. The only exception is in Mark 
 iii. 18-22 (compare with Matt. ix. 14-18), where 
 Mark seems to have departed from the exact 
 order of events. 
 
 TV. The sphere of the Second Gospel. Mark 
 is occupied exclusively with the Galiltiean ministry 
 of Jesus. He does not allude to any ministry in 
 Judaea until the Saviour goes to Jerusalem on His 
 
SQ Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 final visit, there to finish His great mission by His 
 sacrificial death. Mark starts his narrative of 
 the ministry with the imprisonment of John the 
 Baptist (i. 14). This fixes for us the date of the 
 record — viz., the opening of the second year of 
 our Lord's public work. The Fourth Gospel 
 (chapters i.-iv.) precedes the record of Mark. 
 The following events, described mostly by John, 
 must be placed before Mark i. 14, 15 — viz : (1) 
 The Baptist's testimony to Jesus as the Lamb of 
 God (John i. 19-34); (2) the early call of An- 
 drew, John, Simon, Philip, and Nathanael (John 
 i. 35-51) ; (3) marriage at Cana (John ii. 1-12) 
 
 (4) first cleansing of the temple (John ii. 13-21) 
 
 (5) interview with Nicodemus (John iii. 1-21) 
 
 (6) journey from Judsea through Samaria to Gali- 
 lee (John iv.) ; (7) John the Baptist imprisoned 
 (Luke iii. 19-20). At this point Mark's Gospel 
 begins. 
 
 V. Analysis. The Second Gospel may be con- 
 veniently divided into the following sections or 
 parts : 
 
 Part I. The preparation, i. 1-13. 
 
 The Baptist's preaching, verses 1-8. 
 Jesus' baptism and temptation, verses 
 9-13. 
 
 Part II. Ministry in central Galilee, chapters i. 
 14-vii. 23. 
 
Gospel According to Mark 87 
 
 This section comprises the ministry of 
 three circnits through Galilee : 
 
 First circuit, i. 14-iii. 19. 
 
 Second circuit, iii. 20-v. 
 
 Third circuit, vi.-vii. 23. 
 The main subjects are the following : 
 
 1. Preaching the kingdom, i. 14, 15. 
 
 2. Call of first disciples, i. 16-20- • 
 
 3. Various miracles, i. 21-45. 
 
 4. Commencement of conflict with 
 
 rulers, chapters ii.-iii. 12. 
 _^^ Call for apostles, iii. 13-19. 
 
 6. Growing opposition, iii. 20-vi. 13. 
 
 7. Murder of John the Baptist and 
 
 results, vi. 14-vii. 23. 
 
 Part III. Ministry in northern Galilee, vii. 24- 
 ix. 
 Main subjects : 
 
 1. The Syro-phcenician and her 
 
 daughter, vii. 24-30. 
 
 2. Various miracles, vii. 31-viii. 10. 
 
 3. Warnings against Pharisaic doc- 
 
 trines, viii. 11-21. 
 
 4. Blind man healed, viii. 22-26. 
 6. First clear prediction of Christ's 
 
 death, viii. 31. 
 6. Transfiguration and second an- 
 nouncement of death, ix. 1-12. 
 
88 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 7. Third announcement of death, 
 ix. 31, 32. 
 
 Part lY. Last jonrney to Jerusalem, chapters 
 X, xi. 
 The journey was on the " farther side 
 of the Jordan," x. 1., i*. e., on the 
 east side and through the prov- 
 ince of Persea. 
 
 1. Marriage and divorce. 
 
 2. Little children. 
 
 3. Rich young man. 
 
 4. Fourth prediction of death. 
 
 5. Blind Bartimseus. 
 
 6. Entry into Jerusalem. 
 
 Part V. Closing scenes, trial and death, xii.— 
 
 XV. 
 
 1. Increasing hostility to Jesus. 
 
 2. His composure and triumph an- 
 
 ticipated. 
 
 3. Minuteness of the narrative, al- 
 
 most a diary. 
 
 4. Incident of the young man in 
 
 the garden (Mark himself, it 
 is thought). 
 
 Part YI. Yictory over the grave, and ascension, 
 xvi. 
 
 YI. Petirements of Jesus from His active serv- 
 
Gospel Accordincf to Marie 89 
 
 ice. Several such retirements or witlidrawals 
 are traceable, of which more particular mention 
 will be made further on. 
 
 VII. From the preceding analysis we deduce 
 the main design of Mark. Clearly this is the Gos- 
 pel of the Ministry of Christ. The opening sen- 
 tence indicates the chief aim of the inspired record : 
 " The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the 
 Son of God " (i. 1). This is quite apart from the 
 others. Matthew begins with the Lord^s Jewish 
 and covenant relations ; Luke with the details of 
 His birth, childhood, and growth ; John starts 
 with the eternity and divinity of the Word ; but 
 Mark passes all this by. After a brief reference 
 to John the Baptist and Jesus' baptism and 
 temptation, he enters at once upon the narrative 
 of the Ministry (chapter i. 14, E. Y.). "Now 
 after that John was delivered up, Jesus came into 
 Galilee preaching the gospel of God.'' (The 
 words " the kingdom of God " are omitted in 
 nearly all modern critical editions.) 
 
 The facts contained in Mark are almost all 
 found in Matthew. In Mark, Jesus is seen do- 
 ing the same things as in Matthew. But the 
 same facts are employed to present different 
 phases of His complex character and office. He 
 is the King-Messiah in Matthew. He is the 
 Servant of Jehovah in Mark. In the former He 
 is fulfilling the Old Testament predictions of the 
 
90 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Deliverer ; in the latter He is fulfilling the will 
 of God, and doing man's neglected duty. But 
 in serving men He is serving tlie Father, for the 
 Father's pleasure and the Father's glory were 
 His sole end. Of all men He alone could say, 
 " O Lord, truly I am Thy Servant," and then 
 perfectly fulfill what He spoke (Ps. cxvi.). 
 
 While Mark is acquainted with Christ's mani- 
 fold offices, and refers to them in common with 
 the other evangelists, he yet makes prominent 
 one chief feature of His mission — viz.. His 
 blessed service. Keeping this great truth clearly 
 before him, the evangelist here traces the Lord's 
 ways in His public ministry ; he constructs his 
 narrative, and even chooses words and phrases 
 that promote his main purpose and that lend 
 vividness and power to his record. Some of 
 these peculiarities of the Second Gospel we are 
 briefly to study. 
 
 1. The use of the word "straightway." It is 
 Mark's characteristic term, his key- word. He 
 employs it fortj^-two times (Authorized Version), 
 w^hile the other gospels have it but thirty-three 
 times. It is found eleven times in the first chap- 
 ter, as if Mark would thus certify the importance 
 he attaches to it at the very beginning. The latest 
 critical text exhibits the more compressed form,* 
 while in the other gospels the longer term ^ pre- 
 
 ^ eiidvc. 2 £lj0^(jg^ 
 
Gospel According to Marh 91 
 
 vails. The Hevised Version imifornily translates 
 it by the same Enj^Hsh synonym, ^' straightway,'^ 
 the Anthorized Version by a variety of terms, 
 " anon," " forthwith," " immediately," etc. It is 
 worthy of note also that in a large number of 
 places Mark inserts it at the opening of his sen- 
 tence, setting it thus in the emphatic position. 
 Considerable latitude marks its use — e. g.y the 
 Lord's activity ; certain salient features in para- 
 bles ; the murder of John the Baptist ; the call 
 of certain disciples ; the possessed of demons ; 
 and the trial and condemnation of Jesus. But 
 whatever its connection, it uniformly designates 
 rapidity of movement, promptness of action. This 
 will appear when we consider some of the places 
 where it occurs. 
 
 In chapter i. 10 it is used for the first time in 
 Mark — " And straightway coming up out of the 
 water he saw the heavens rent assunder, and the 
 Spirit as a dove descending upon him." (E.. V.) 
 Matthew also has it (iii. 16), but more closely 
 with the baptism than does Mark who joins it 
 with the ordinance, with the rending of the 
 heavens, and the descent of the spirit, thus bring- 
 ing out both the rapidity and the unity of the 
 events. In Matthew (iii. 17) the Father's voice 
 speaks o/Christ, testifying His delight in Him ; in 
 Mark He speaks to Christ, for now at length a 
 man is here on earth who perfectly does His will, 
 
92 Studie,s in the Four Gospels 
 
 and who will glorify His holy name. He is the 
 second Adam, and God^s beloved Son. 
 
 " And straightway the Spirit driveth him forth 
 into the wilderness " (i. 12, R. Y.). The tempta- 
 tion follows " straightway '' upon the baptism. 
 Neither Matthew nor Lnke has the word in their 
 account. Mark alone adopts it. And the two 
 words, " straightway '' and " driveth '^ import the 
 energy and the swiftness with which He was 
 brought to the scene of the extraordinary trial. 
 There is something startling, almost violent, in 
 the action implied in this language, as if He Avere 
 hurried on and impelled forward by an impulse 
 not Plis own. We know, however, from Mat- 
 thew's and Luke's milder ^' led," that He volun- 
 tarily submitted to this supreme test. What com- 
 pression and power are found in the brief account : 
 " And he was there in the wilderness forty days, 
 tempted of Satan ; and with the wild beasts ; and 
 the angels ministered unto him." Each phrase 
 deepens and intensifies the graphic words " and 
 straightway the Spirit driveth him forth." A 
 strange sternness gathers about the scene as the 
 holy Son of God is thus seen going forth under the 
 divine propulsion to face that strong fierce spirit 
 whose assaults, so disastrous in the trial of the first 
 Adam, shall prove powerless and vain Avith the 
 second Adam. It reminds one of that other im- 
 pressive scene (Mark x. 32) where Jesus went 
 
Gospel According to Mark 93 
 
 before His disciples, striding on with set face to 
 meet the solemn and awful tragedy that awaited 
 Him at Jerusalem. In neither the one nor the 
 other case was there reluctance or recoil. For here 
 was one in the wilderness who had not forfeited 
 Eden ; who w^as with the wild beasts, not wild to 
 Him ; and to whom as to the first man the serpent 
 came, but found nothing in Him. The angels 
 were the astonished witnesses of His temptation 
 and His victory. As God's servant He exposed 
 Himself to all, but was in no danger. 
 
 In chapter i. 20 the call of James and John is 
 recorded, and we read, '^ and straightway he called 
 them." Matthew inserts the w^ord in connection 
 with their leaving the ship and their father 
 (iv. 22). It thus seems that on seeing the two 
 brothers Jesus at once summoned them to become 
 His followers and friends, and they as promptly 
 obeyed. Swiftness of movement and decision are 
 expressed by the term. Devotion to His minis- 
 try is indicated in the same way by His entering 
 the synagogue and teaching on the Sabbath 
 (i. 21). 
 
 Mark records the parable of the sower, and 
 characteristically says of the seed that fell by the 
 wayside, " straightway cometh Satan and taketh 
 away the word that had been sown" (iv. 15). 
 Neither Matthew nor Luke uses " straightway " 
 in their record of the Lord's interpretation (Mat- 
 
94 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 thew xiii. 19 ; Luke viii. 12). So, too, In the 
 parable of the seed growing secretly (the only 
 parable recorded by Mark alone), the word is in- 
 troduced : " But when the fruit is brought forth, 
 straightway he putteth in the sickle, because the 
 harvest is come ^' (iv. 29). Silently and gradually 
 the seed grows until fully ripe, then straightway 
 it is gathered and garnered by the husbandman. 
 The illustration holds both as to the individual 
 believer and the whole body of the redeemed. 
 The one is taken, and all are taken, to be with 
 Christ when maturity is attained, when the body 
 is complete. The parable teaches the beginning, 
 the growth, and the swift consummation of the 
 gospel dispensation, which terminates w-ith the 
 advent of the Son of man and the rapture of the 
 saints. (Cp. I. Thess. iv. 16, 17.) 
 
 When with the disciples Jesus had passed over 
 the lake into the country of the Gadarenes, 
 ^' straightw-ay there met him out of the tombs a 
 man with an unclean spirit" (v. 1-15). Christ^s 
 presence seems instantly to have aroused the hope 
 and the fear, the homage and the horror of this 
 poor demoniac, for " he ran and worshiped 
 him," " I adjure thee by God, tliat thou torment 
 me not." Attraction and repulsion alternated in 
 his distracted mind. The best and the worst in 
 him struggled for the mastery in tlie presenci; of 
 the Deliverer ; for wherever Jesus w^ent ceaseless 
 
Gospel According to Mark 95 
 
 activity distinguished Him ; He was in constant 
 antagonism with the world of evil spirits, and with 
 human ills of every sort. In chapter xv. 1, the 
 word " straightway " occurs for the last time in 
 our book, and it there describes the murderous 
 haste with which the priests and rulers hurried 
 their patient captive to the bar of Pilate. They 
 " bound him/' although He offered no resistance 
 and uttered no protest : " and carried him away," 
 although He went as a lamb to the slaughter. 
 
 From these examples we are justified in con- 
 cluding that neither from habit, nor by accident, 
 nor yet for rhetorical embellishment, does the 
 evangelist introduce so frequently this word 
 " straightway ; " he does so because it exactly 
 serves his purpose and so admirably fits into his 
 design : for the Second Gospel may be described 
 as a portrait of God's indefatigable Servant who 
 never pauses in His work nor falters in His devo- 
 tion till all is done. It is a. series of vivid pic- 
 tures, " cartoons,'' as one aptly says, we here have 
 of Jesus, ever busy about His Father's work and 
 will. Therefore the events so rapidly succeed 
 each other. Swiftly and unerringly the mighty 
 Minister moves on to the end, the final consum- 
 mation. It is His marvelous activity w^e are 
 made to see. How appropriate, therefore, is this 
 descriptive term " straightway " which the evan- 
 gelist so often and unexpectedly introduces, and 
 
96 * Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 so suggestively connects with the deeds and events 
 of the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ here is seen 
 *' unhasting, unresting.'^ 
 
 2. The titles and names which are given to 
 Jesus by those who address him evince Mark's de- 
 sign. The gospels record many instances of per- 
 sons who came to him with questions and requests. 
 Many of these petitioners were sincere seekers 
 after help and light. They came seeking deliv- 
 erance for loved ones, and for aid in their diffi- 
 culties and distresses. But there were others 
 who were open or secret foes of Jesus, whose in- 
 quiries were prompted by malice and meant to 
 insnare him. These all addressed our Saviour 
 by a variety of titles, such as Rabbi, Master, 
 Lord, Son of David, and Son of God. But in no 
 case do they call him Son of man. In all the 
 New Testament but three times does He receive 
 this name of Son of man from others, and two 
 of these but echo His own use of it (John. xii. 
 34) ; the other is Stephen's dying utterance (Acts 
 vii. 56). It is Christ's self-chosen name, appro- 
 priated by Himself exclusively, and always im- 
 plies in His lips His incorporation with our kind 
 and His possession of a higher nature with which 
 His manhood stands in contrast. As Son of man 
 He is a true member of our race ; is its pattern 
 and representative, the Son of mankind. As 
 Son of man He is more, infinitely more ; for His 
 
Gospel According to Mark 97 
 
 manhood is a rope which he Has thrown round 
 a higher form of preexistent life, even His proper 
 deity. 
 
 Now, the Gospel by Mark widely differs from 
 the others in its bestowal of the divine name of 
 Lord {Kurlos) on the Saviour. Thus the evan- 
 gelist twice gives Him this great name, and in 
 both cases after His resurrection, when His humil- 
 iation was passed and the earthly ministry was 
 over; xvi. 19, "So then after the Lord [Jesus] 
 had spoken unto them, he was received up into 
 heaven '' ; xvi. 20, " The Lord working with 
 them.'' Jesus employs this name when speaking 
 of himself also twice; v. 19, "Go home to thy 
 friends and tell how great things the Lord hath 
 done for thee, and had compassion on thee ;" 
 xi. 3, " Say ye, the Lord hath need of him." In 
 His argument drawn from Psalm ex. 35-37 
 He clearly implies His perfect right to its appro- 
 priation to Himself, but does not take it as His 
 own. By those who address Him He is, in the 
 Second Gospel, uniformly called Master {Rahhi), 
 or Teacher (Didqskalos). Thus, in Matt. viii. 2, 
 the leper says : " Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst 
 make me clean." But in Mark i. 40 the title is 
 omitted, and he says : " If thou wilt, thou canst 
 make me clean." In Matt. viii. 25 the terrified 
 disciples awake Him out of His sleep, saying : 
 " Lord, save us ; we perish." But in the corre- 
 
 7 
 
98 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 spending place in Mark we find, " Master, carest 
 thou not that we perish ? '' (iv. 38). In Matt, 
 xidii. 4 Peter says : " Lord, it is good for ns to 
 be here." In Mark : " Master, it is good for us 
 to be here " (ix. 5). In Matt. xvii. 15 the father 
 of the lunatic child says : ^' Lord, have mercy on 
 my son'^; in Mark ix. 17 he says: ''Master, I 
 have brought unto thee my son." In Mark ix. 
 24 we read in our Common Version, " Lord, I 
 believe " ; but in the Eevised Version, and in 
 every critical Greek text examined, the title 
 " Lord " is omitted ; the father of the suffering 
 child only says : " I believe." Luke records 
 that blind Bartimreus said : " Lord, that I may 
 receive my sight" (Luke xviii. 41). In Mat- 
 thew's account of the cure of two blind men, one 
 of wdiom no doubt was Bartimaeus, we find the 
 great name: *'Lord, that our eyes may be 
 opened" (Matt. xx. 33). But Mark has "Rab- 
 boni, that I may receive my sight " (x. 51, R. V.). 
 In Matt. xxvi. 22 each of the disciples asks con- 
 cerning the one of their number that was to be- 
 tray Him : " Lord, is it I ? " ^ But in Mark xiv. 
 
 * The title Lord is applied in the New Testament to others 
 besides Jesus, and denotes the rank of the one addressed and 
 the respect due him. In some instances likewise it is given 
 to the Saviour in the same sense (John iv. 11). But the 
 apostles at the Supper did not thus bestow it on Him. 
 They knew Him as the Christ, the Son of the living God, as 
 Peter's confession certainly declares (Matt. xvi. 16 ; Mark 
 
Gospel AcGording to 3IarJc 99 
 
 19 they "say unto liim one by one, Is it I?'' 
 Here, as in all the other instances cited, the 
 divine title of Lord is omitted. It is very re- 
 markable that in no one of the four gospels does 
 Judas Iscariot ever address Him by the name of 
 Lord. Thus, after they had each asked, " Lord, 
 is it I ? " Judas said : " Master, is it I ? '' (Matt. 
 XX vi. 25). Thus likewise in John xiv. 22 the 
 Jndas who calls him Lord is carefully distin- 
 guished from Iscariot; for Iscariot never gave 
 Him this name. " No man can call Jesus Lord 
 but by the Holy Ghost.^' Judas never had the 
 Spirit in His regenerating and sanctifying power. 
 There is only one exception in Mark to this 
 uniform method of addressing the Saviour. It 
 is the address of the Syro-Phoenician woman in 
 vii. 28. She was a Greek, of an abhorred race, 
 a Canaanite, a reprobate of reprobates, with no 
 claim whatever on the mercy and help of Christ, 
 such as a Jewess might urge ; the pagan mother 
 of a demoniac child. In her plea for help she 
 modestly yet very sagaciously and trustingly 
 seizes upon a single word in Jesus' reply to her 
 
 viii. 8). John also attests tlieir belief in His superhuman 
 knowledge and His mission from the Father (John xvi. 30. 
 Indeed, the valedictory address is based on their faitli in Him 
 as the Son of God, John xiv.-xvii.). Hence they must have 
 meant more than mere regard, or honorable distinction, when 
 they called Him Lord: they meant by the title that He was 
 divine, and their Lord and Master (John xiii. 13, 14). 
 
100 studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 cry for deliverance : " Let the children first be 
 filled : for it is not meet to take the children's 
 bread, and cast it unto the dogs.'' " Dogs " ! 
 How stern, ahnost repellant the answer sounds ! 
 But it was the diminutive name Jesus used, found 
 nowhere else in the New Testament save here 
 and Matt. xv. 26, 27. It signifies " little dogs f 
 is almost equivalent to our colloquial " doggie." 
 It cannot apply to those fierce, strong brutes 
 that prowl the streets, and that are owned and 
 claimed by none. Rather, it points to those 
 household creatures that are considered pets; 
 domestic dogs, not those ^Svithout." That 
 word, ^'little dogs," she accepts, appropriates. 
 " Yes, Lord : yet the little dogs under the table 
 eat of the children's crumbs." On this word 
 she rests her hope, finds her clew to His heart, 
 and presses her suit. " Yes, Lord " ; for in that 
 lowly form she discovered the mighty Lord, the 
 God of glory, and she won her suit. 
 
 Tliis peculiarity harmonizes Avith the main de- 
 sign of Mark — viz., to present Jesus to us as the 
 Minister of God, the Servant of Jehovah. It is 
 fitting therefore that He should receive the names 
 which appropriately belong to Him as such. 
 Here He veils His glory, robes Himself in the 
 garments of patient and quiet service ; is the 
 obedient One ; " for even the Son of man came 
 not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to 
 
Oospcl According to Mark 101 
 
 give his lifo a ransom for many" (x. 45). 
 Therefore, while His autiiority and power are 
 fully recognized, nevertheless here He receives 
 but sparingly the supreme titles of the great 
 God. In Matthew they are plentifully bestowed, 
 for there He is the great king, the heavenly 
 Sovereign ; in lAike also, for there he is the di- 
 vine Saviour, the Kinsman-Redeemer ; in John 
 likewise, for there he is the Son of God, Himself 
 God. But in Mark He is the Son who is the 
 Servant, and this is the feature mainly that the 
 Holy Spirit here traces. 
 
 Closely akin to this scanty use of the divine 
 names given to Jesus in Mark is the profoundly 
 significant question of chapter vi. 3, ^' Is not this 
 the carpenter?'' Matthew writes that the in- 
 credulous Nazarenes asked, ^' Is not this the car- 
 penter's son ? " (xiii. 55). But Mark alone tells us 
 that Pie w^as Himself a carpenter, that He toiled 
 with His own hands at the carpenter's bench, and 
 no doubt was often covered with the dust and shav- 
 ings of that trade. It has been conjectured that 
 Joseph was now dead, and that the support of the 
 family devolved mainly upon Jesus. An ancient 
 Father (Justin Martyr), reports the tradition 
 that He made yokes and plows and other agri- 
 cultural implements. It may reverently be con- 
 jectured that He did the work of the joiner and 
 builder likewise. We may be sure that what He 
 
102 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 wrought was faithfully and honestly clone, that 
 nothing left His hands in which worthless ma- 
 terial found place, or to which poor workman- 
 ship attached. The yoke He made rested easy 
 and comfortable on the ox's neck, causing no 
 abrasion of the skin. The plow He wrought 
 exactly served its purpose, and turned the fur- 
 row as it should. The same integrity and 
 flxitlifulness which are seen attaching to His 
 public ministry marked also His toil at the 
 bench. 
 
 What an amazing scene this is ! The Son of 
 God, the maker of the worlds and the ages, 
 weilding the ax and driving the plane and the 
 saw in that humble carpenter's shop of Nazareth ! 
 What may it mean? We are told that every 
 Jewish lad was taught some useful trade. Even 
 the rabbis had to learn some handicraft. Paul 
 was a tentmaker. And the Lord Jesus, a true 
 Israelite, followed willingly the example of His 
 reputed father, Joseph, who was a carpenter. 
 He has forever' ennobled industry, honest toil; 
 He has invested it with a dignity that it never 
 had before, and that it must wear unsullied 
 while the earth remains. The world's toilers, 
 the tired millions, may well consider Nazareth's 
 carpenter, and find in Him their weary labor 
 transfigured into a noble service for God, and 
 their drudgery into a glad independence. The 
 
Gospel Accord mg to Mark 103 
 
 greatest of the apostles could proudly say, 
 *^ These hands have ministered unto my necessi- 
 ties, and to them that were with me " (Acts xx. 
 84). Paul had the very spirit of the ciirpenter 
 of Nazareth. 
 
 But there is more in this wondrous statement 
 touching the Master. He was God's minister in 
 the world. As such He joyfully came down 
 into all the actual circumstances of our humanity. 
 He indentified Himself with us and w^ith all 
 that belongs to us as men, sin only apart. God's 
 minister must become a man, and take upon 
 Himself the relations and the duties of a man. 
 Therefore with His own hands He wrought, and 
 ate His bread in the sweat of His face, as do we. 
 He was Jehovah's workman, and must serve. 
 But no less was He pleasing to God in the car- 
 penter shop than when preaching the good news 
 of the kingdom, and w^orking His mighty mira- 
 cles. As certainly He did God's ^vill at the 
 bench as when He wrought redemption for us, 
 for His whole life was one of service, obedience, 
 perfect submission to the Father's will, God's 
 blessed Servant. 
 
 To the same class belongs that other remark- 
 able saying of our Lord : " But of that day and 
 that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels 
 which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the 
 Father" (xiii. 32.) He declares that even He 
 
104 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 does not know the exact time of His second ad- 
 vent. Difficult as the statement is, it is not 
 more difficult than the scene in John xi. where 
 we are told that Jesus' face Avas wet with human 
 tears, while the almighty voice commanded, 
 "Lazarus, come forth.'' His human and divine 
 natures are present and blend, yet are most dis- 
 tinct. But let us note two things respecting the 
 Olivet prophecy, which, by the way, is recorded 
 by Matthew, Mark, and Luke. (1) Christ in it 
 does not speak as do Daniel, John, and other 
 prophets in their predictions. These all assert 
 that they received their messages from God, that 
 they did not speak of themselves, but that God 
 spake through them. But Christ speaks through- 
 out this great discourse as one who Himself 
 know^s the things He utters. He does not let fall 
 a hint that it was at the time communicated to 
 Him by the Holy Spirit. It is He that sees the 
 events He describes, and He foretells and forth- 
 tells the future. ^(2) He knows the precise 
 events and their sequence both preceding and 
 succeeding His coming. All that goes before, 
 and all that follows His advent He clearly 
 knows, and tells so much of it as pleases Him. 
 The day and the hour He does not know. It is 
 very suggestive that, according to the received 
 text, it is only in Mark where this phrase, 
 "neither the Son," occurs — in the Gospel of the 
 
Gospel According to ^[(trk 105 
 
 Servant of Gocl. Is it because as Servant it was 
 not given Him to know it? Is it because of 
 His mediatorial character here so graphically 
 portrayed, that it was not a part of His service 
 to reveal it? We do not know. Up to that ex- 
 act point, He knows what is coming; after that 
 point, He knows what will take place. On that 
 exact point, the day and the hour, rests the hand 
 of Omnipotence, concealing it; it must not be 
 made known. And Christ, the obedient one, is 
 perfectly content that it should lie concealed. 
 
 3. The Silences of Mark. The omissions of the 
 Second Gospel are remarkable and significant; 
 for, as often said, the silences of Scripture are 
 scarcely less suggestive than the utterances. 
 Only so much of the Baptist's ministry is re- 
 corded as is necessary to lead up to the anointing 
 and certification of Jesus from heaven. With like 
 brevity is the temptation in the wilderness in- 
 troduced, and this because it is introductory to 
 Mark's main object — viz., the ministry of Him 
 who was to cope successfully with Satan's power. 
 Then the evangelist turns at once to the 
 narration of the ministry, and follows it to the 
 end. There is complete silence as to all that 
 preceded Jesus' public work. Nothing of His 
 birth. His lineage. His childhood, or His youth 
 is here related. Scarcely any reference is found 
 to His mother and His relatives ; they are intro- 
 
106 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 duced incidentally, as needful to complete the nar- 
 rative ; and attention is called to them, not by 
 the Lord nor the writer, but by the multitude 
 (iii. 21, 32; vi. 3). Mark has no sermon on the 
 mount, no formal and full declaration of the 
 principles of the kingdom of God, no woes 
 pronounced on the guilty towns of Galilee which 
 had witnessed unmoved and unaifectcd His 
 mighty works ; no predictions of impending doom 
 for Jerusalem, such as Matthew and Luke record. 
 In fact, Mark reports few of the Lord's dis- 
 courses. Here He is doing, not teaching. Serv- 
 ice, ministry, with the salient features belong- 
 ing thereto, is the great theme. Tliere are but 
 four parables recorded by Mark, and one of them 
 alone is peculiar to him — viz., the seed growing 
 secretly, a parable of service (ix. 26-28). He is 
 the sower, He watches over the grain with tender 
 solicitude, and at the end He is the reaper. In 
 chapter xiii. He unveils the future with the 
 authority of a prophet of God, but He does not 
 here tell of the "talents" committed to men, nor 
 of His judgment as to their use and non-use, nor 
 of the judgment of the nations, as He does in 
 Matthew. In the three parables common to the 
 other gospels it is obvious that the main idea is 
 that of service : the sower, mustard seed, and 
 the vineyard and husbandmen. They appear to 
 be selected because of their manifest adaptation 
 
Gospel According to Mark 107 
 
 to the purpose which the inspired writer lias in 
 view. 80 likewise in tlie miracles of this Gospel 
 Jesus is seen meeting human need, delivering 
 th(! oppressed and afflicted. In feeding the 
 hungry multitudes, in healing diseases, in casting 
 out evil spirits, there are touches which exhibit 
 the spirit and temper of His service that are 
 most suggestive and beautifid. 
 
 In the third chapter there is told the story of 
 the call and ordination of the twelve, but the ac- 
 count of their mission and instructions is not so 
 full as in Matthew x. There is a little phrase 
 found in it that we do Avell to consider, for it fits 
 into the main design of Mark with admirable 
 nicety. It is this: '^And he ordained twelve 
 that they should be with him'' (iii. 14). They 
 were to be His companions as well as His mis- 
 sionaries ; His friends and helpers as well as His 
 servants. "That they should be with him'' to 
 share His journeys, His solitude, His trials, and 
 His triumphs : His fellow-laborers ; His asso- 
 ciates rather than dependents. They were to 
 know Him and His mind. His methods and 
 ways, by personal intimacy and fellowship. 
 They were to learn from Him how to work and 
 to w^ait, to serve and to suffer. This and the 
 like touches show us " the girdle wherewith he 
 was girded." 
 
 4. Christ's devotion to His ministry is another 
 
108 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 significant featnre of the Second Gospel. The 
 essence of all true service is fidelity, unswerving 
 loyalty. Other servants of God have been dis- 
 tinguished for this supreme excellence of charac- 
 ter. Scripture bears this very noteworthy testi- 
 mony of Moses : " My servant Moses is not so, 
 who is faithful in all mine house. With him 
 will I speak mouth to mouth " (Num. xii. 7, 8 ; 
 cp. Heb. iii. 6). No higher eulogy could be pro- 
 nounced. The steady patience and constancy of 
 Moses in the mighty work given him to do are 
 almost without a parallel in the history of our 
 race. Of David likewise it is written that "after 
 he had served his own generation by the will of 
 God, fell on sleep/^ Although a king to whom 
 his subjects paid glad and willing homage, 
 David none the less was himself a servant of 
 God, and his life was passed in serving his own 
 generation. So likewise Paul's marvelous career 
 was one of tireless devotion to the name and 
 honor and glory of Christ. But Jesus in this as 
 in all His other relations to God and men holds 
 the preeminence. Although a Son over His own 
 house, the Lord also of the house, He became a 
 Servant therein, and " was faithful to him that 
 appointed him '' (Heb. iii. 2). The other servants 
 might grow weary w^ith their heavy task, as we 
 know they often did ; they might relax their 
 energies, and sigh for release. But nothing of 
 
Gospel According to Mark 100 
 
 this is found in Jehovah's loyal and obedient 
 Servant, Christ. The want of appreciation and 
 sympathy on the part of His disciples, the malice 
 and rage of Satan, the apathy and nnbclief of 
 the multitude, and the bitter hostility of the 
 rulers, could not quench His zeal nor chill His 
 constancy nor hinder His purpose, thougli the 
 attitude of the nation toward Him might fill His 
 heart with sorrow and His eyes with tears. 
 
 The other evangelists magnify our Lord's de- 
 votion to the work given Him to do. They 
 exhibit Him as the i)erfect pattern of obedience, 
 and the highest example of faithfulness. They 
 describe Him as altogether true to His exalted 
 mission, as doing always the things that pleased 
 the Father, and as never seeking His own glory 
 nor His own will (John v. 30; viii. 29, 50). 
 But in Mark peculiar stress is placed on the 
 tenacity with which the Lord held flist to His 
 ministry, and the diligence with which He prose- 
 cuted it to the very end. 
 
 He seems to have abridged the hours of repose 
 in order to give Himself wholly to His work. 
 Thus we read that " in the morning, rising up a 
 great while before day, he went out, and departed 
 into a solitary place, and there prayed '' (i. 35). 
 The day before (Sabbath) in Capernaum had been 
 one of constant service, of healing and teaching, 
 till " the sun did set/' enough to tax the energies 
 
110 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 and the strength even of the Son of man. He 
 needed rest and sleep to restore His physical 
 power. But little rest, however, ^as taken ; for 
 He needed prayer more than sleep, and so " rising 
 u]) a great while before day '^ He retired to the 
 solitary place where He might be alone with 
 God. His solitude was interrupted by Peter and 
 the other disciples who pursued Him, announcing 
 that all men sought Him ; and with no sign of 
 impatience He at once addressed Himself to His 
 work, supplying the wants of the needy crowds. 
 On another occasion, wdien the aj^ostles had 
 returned from their mission and reported to 
 Him, He said, " Come ye yourselves apart into a 
 desert place, and rest awhile '' (vi. 30, 31). But 
 the multitude, who had watched them, surprised 
 them in their retreat. Moved with compassion 
 for them, He at once turns and begins to teach, 
 and to relieve their hunger. It would have been 
 a valued moment to Him which He might have 
 spent alone with the disciples, for they needed 
 His instructions as well as the people ; but the 
 deeper necessity of the latter wins His immediate 
 attention. It was but one service giving place 
 to another. When the day was done He sent 
 away the multitude, then the apostles also, that 
 He might spend a season in private supplication 
 (vi. 46, 47). But He kept watch over the dis- 
 ciples as they toiled in rowing ; He saw that the 
 
Gospel According to Mark 111 
 
 storm was endangering them ; and so He came 
 to them upon the water about tlie fourth watch 
 of the night (vi. 48). Perhaps He got no sleep 
 that night. How diligent as well as compas- 
 sionate a servant He was ! 
 
 So, also, in chapter iv. we read of another 
 storm on the lake. He had spent another day 
 of hard and weary toil among the needy people. 
 '^And when they had sent away the multitude, 
 they took him even as he was in the ship^' 
 (verse 36). The phrase, '^even as he was," is 
 peculiar to Mark, though that of John (iv. 6) 
 reminds us of it. It imports His Aveariness and 
 exhaustion, the result of the day's taxing labor. 
 "And he was asleep in the hinder part of the 
 ship on a pillow," the cushion for rest found 
 ordinarily in the boat's stern — the tired, patient 
 worker. Contrast this scene with that recorded 
 in John iv. 6 ; " He sat thus on the well " at 
 Sychar, Aveary here likewise as in the boat that 
 evening, hungry too and thirsty, waiting the 
 return of the disciples with food. But when 
 they came back they found Him feasted and 
 rested already ; the joy of harvest was His ; 
 for a poor, careless sinner had been made happy 
 by Plis gracious words. In Mark there was no 
 woman of Samaria sent away with the glad con- 
 sciousness of salvation. But in John His spirit 
 is refreshed by the fruit of His labor, and He 
 
112 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 can do without food or sleep. " I have meat to 
 eat that ye know not of ^ is His word there, in 
 the stead of the pillow here. In both these in- 
 stances we see in Him the limitations of His 
 manhood with its sinless infirmities. In Mark 
 He is exhausted and sleeps. But when the 
 terrified disciples arouse Him with their half- 
 reproachful question, " Master, carest thou not 
 that we perish?'^ He quietly rebukes the wind 
 and calms the angry sea. Did He return to 
 sleep ? We are not told. In John, hunger and 
 thirst are forgotten in the glad service of saving 
 a lost soul. In both accounts His humanity and 
 deity are manifest ; but in that of John pre- 
 eminence is given the divine side of His com- 
 plex personality. 
 
 Other evidences of the Saviour's devotion to 
 His ministry as portrayed in this Gospel are not 
 wanting. As we have seen, here our blessed 
 Lord rests but little, scarcely pauses in His 
 gracious service. So great were the crowds that 
 thronged His ministry, so accessible was He (for, 
 as one has well said, '' He was the most accessible 
 of men '^), so eager was He to relieve and to 
 bless, that neitlier He nor His disciples had 
 opportunity or time ^' even to eat bread ^^ (iii. 20; 
 vi. 31) — statements found only in Mark. In 
 chapter iii. 31 Ave are informed that ''there came 
 then his brethern and his mother, and, stand- 
 
Goftpel According to Mark 113 
 
 ino: without, sent unto him, calling him.'^ So 
 compact was the multitude encirclino^ Him that 
 these His relatives could not reach His presence 
 and directly address Him ; hence their message. 
 From verse 21 of this chapter we learn the 
 motive of their errand — " And when his friends 
 heard of it, they went out to lay hold on him : 
 for they said he is beside himself.'^ When His 
 friends saw Him so bent upon His great mission as 
 to neglect His bodily necessities, and the consum- 
 ing zeal that possessed Him, they imagined that 
 His mind had given way. No worse suspicion 
 ever darkened the minds of those who knew Him 
 best. But why was the mother with them ? 
 Did she share the notion that He was ^^ beside 
 himself"? Anxiety and concern she certaiidy 
 felt for her wondrous Son, probably nothing 
 more. No doubt she was induced to accompany 
 them from Nazareth to the place where Jesus 
 now was that she might persuade Him to return 
 to the quiet home, at least until the excitement 
 of Galilee should subside, and He gain the much 
 needed rest and refreshment. But what a graphic 
 picture does this strange incident, recorded by 
 Mark alone, give us of his devotion to His min- 
 istry, His self-denying service ! 
 
 His attentiveness to His ministry appears in 
 His look, so often mentioned in the book. When 
 His mother and brethren sent Him the message 
 
114 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 of which we liave just been speaking, we read, 
 " And he looked round about on them which 
 sat about him, and said, Behold my mother 
 and my brethren !" So also we are told in iii. 
 6 that '^ he looked round about on them with 
 anger,'' but we are immediately informed that 
 this was not the anger of one who has taken the 
 seat of judgment, but of one who was grieved 
 at heart for the hardness and unbelief of men. 
 A like careful observance is seen in the cure of 
 the woman with the bloody issue (v. 25-34) who 
 so quietly touched His clothes — '' And he looked 
 round about to see her that had done this thing." 
 It is significant that Mark adopts the form of 
 the word for "look'' expressive of continued 
 action — " He kept looking round about," as it 
 might be interpreted. Of course the Lord knew, 
 as Peter and the others did not know. It was a 
 question like that to Adam, " Where art thou?" 
 Did He grudge that the healing virtue had been 
 extracted in that secret way? Xo, she was 
 healed. But she must confess Him, her healer 
 and Lord, before the people, else one main pur- 
 pose of the cure would be lost ; therefore He 
 looked round about to see her — such was the 
 care and thoughtfulness He gave to each detail 
 of His blessed service. 
 
 In the exquisite account of the rich young 
 ruler we are told that Jesus "beholding him 
 
Gospel According to Mark 115 
 
 loved hiin'^ (x. 21). It was an earnest, tender, 
 and searching look with which the Lord regarded 
 him, one that pierced to the central deeps of his 
 being, detecting his pride, self-righteousness, and 
 Aveakness. 
 
 Moreover, His attentiveness in the prosecution 
 of His work appears in His touch. Thus, in the 
 healing of the mother of Simon Peter's wife, we 
 are told " he took her by the hand and lifted her 
 up." Matthew says ^* he touched her hand " 
 (viii. 15); Luke, that He ^' stood over her and 
 rebuked the fever" (iv. 38). In Mark there is 
 closer contact with the suffering patient and effect- 
 ive help expressed. The description of the Lord's 
 healing the deaf man who had an impediment 
 in his speech is most vivid. He first removed 
 him from the distracting presence of the crowd ; 
 then He put His fingers in his ears, touched his 
 tongue with saliva from His own lips ; and, 
 looking np to heaven, He sighed and said to 
 him, Ephphatha, be opened. By signs which 
 the man could understand Jesus sought to arrest 
 his attention, stimulate his expectation and his 
 faith. But no less was His own mind concen- 
 trated upon the miracle which He wrought. So, 
 too. He took the blind man by the hand, led 
 him out of the village, put saliva on his eyes, put 
 His hands upon his eyes, and bade him look up 
 (viii. 23-25). Little children were brought that 
 
116 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 He should touch them ; and He took them up in 
 His arms, put His hands upon them and blessed 
 them (x. 13-16). 
 
 In Mark likewise we have glimpses of the 
 sorrows that attended His ministry. We read 
 that He sighed (vii. 34); sighed deeply (viii. 12); 
 that He was grieved for the hardness of their 
 hearts (iii. 5) ; that He marveled because of 
 their unbelief (vi. 6). Only twice in the gospels 
 do we read of His marveling : here at the unbe- 
 lief of his fellow-townsmen of Nazareth, and at 
 the wondrous display of faith by the Roman 
 officer (Matt. viii. 10). 
 
 It is common to regard these details touching 
 the gestures and looks of the Lord Jesus as char- 
 acteristic of Mark\s graphic style, as " poetic ob- 
 jectivity,'' as proof that Peter's " fiery spirit 
 pervades the book," as indicative of ^^stormful 
 haste." No doubt these touches lend vividness 
 and beauty to the narrative. But is this all ? 
 May not this be a very subordinate element? 
 Once we accept the view that this Gospel, as all 
 Scripture, is the product of the Spirit, we are shut 
 up to the conviction that something more than 
 picturesqueness is meant by the minuteness of 
 Mark, that what the evangelist more especially 
 aims at is to set forth in graphic words the in- 
 tentness with which Jehovah's exalted Servant 
 prosecuted the ministry appointed Him. 
 
Gospel According to Mark 117 
 
 5. Another marked feature of Christ^s minis- 
 try is its unobtrusiveness. All through this 
 Gospel Jesus seems anxious not to draw attention 
 to Himself or His work. He de])recates public- 
 ity. In His unselfish humility He is as one 
 naturally contented with obscurity; as lacking 
 the restless desire for eminence which is so com- 
 mon in really great men ; as disliking compe- 
 tition and disputes as to who should be greatest ; 
 as eager and careful that even His miracles 
 should not add to His reputation. In the midst 
 of His jnarvelous activities there is observable 
 in His ways a quiet reserve, an absence of self- 
 assertion, which is most attractive in a servant. 
 He Avill not even thrust His power to heal upon 
 those who seek it not, nor wish it. He will even 
 take the patient Avhom He heals into a sort of 
 fellowship with Himself, asking him to be will- 
 ing to believe. Where unbelief reigns He can 
 do no mighty work (vi. 5, 6), but turns away 
 and seeks other and more congenial fields. 
 When He retired for the time into the parts of 
 Tyre and Sidon we are told He Avould have no 
 man know it. He sought a privacy which both 
 He and the apostles needed. But the evangelist 
 adds immediately that " he could not be hid " 
 (vii. 24). In His last tour through Galilee ^* he 
 would not that any man should know it" (ix. 30). 
 There are many reasons why He sought this 
 
118 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 privacy. The chief one was that as He had 
 borne His testimony to the people, had wrought 
 the deeds of Messiah in their presence and now 
 was virtually refused and rejected, no further 
 testimony to them Avould avail ; the nation had 
 declared its mind, had chosen its course ; accord- 
 ingly, nothing could now be done but complete 
 the ministry by the death of Jehovah's Servant. 
 Unsought and unwelcome. He will not thrust 
 Himself upon them further. 
 
 At Decapolis He took the deaf man aside pri- 
 vately ; and when He had him by himself He 
 cured him, charging him to say nothing about it 
 (vii. 36). When He had restored sight to a 
 blind man He sent him home with the injunc- 
 tion, " Neither go into the town, nor tell it to any 
 in the town'' (viii. 26). Both Matthew and 
 Luke tell of His charging those whom He had 
 healed not to publish it abroad. Mark com- 
 monly adds a word or an expression that gives 
 characteristic distinctiveness to his narrative. 
 Thus when He had raised Jairus' daughter to 
 life we read, " He charged them straitly that no 
 man should know it" (v. 43). This Matthew 
 omits ; Luke records it, but leaves out the ex- 
 pressive " straitly." In like manner He sternly 
 refuses the witness of demons who recognized the 
 Son of God in that lowly form ; He Avould have 
 no attestation from so foul a source (i. 25-34; 
 
Gospel According to 3Iark 110 
 
 iii. 12, etc.). But even in these instances Mark 
 has touches that indicate how closely he adheres 
 to his plan. Here the Lord unwearily prose- 
 cutes His work ; and if it gather notice, His way 
 is still to go on, and under fresh services still to 
 hide himself. Thus when Peter and other disciples 
 break in upon His retirement with their "all 
 men seek for thee '' (i. 37), as though the multitude 
 would make Him public. He hides Himself 
 under fresh labors, saying, " Let us go into the 
 next towns and preach there also, for therefore 
 came I forth." Now and then we see Him with 
 the robe on, as in the transfiguration scene, but 
 it is speedily put oif, and the girdle as speedily 
 put on. 
 
 6. Another feature of the Lord's ministry 
 made prominent in Mark is His retirement. It 
 is quite true that Mark is the historian of Christ's 
 activities. Here Jesus is seen doing. Here He 
 is Jehovah's obedient and tireless Servant. But 
 in beautiful harmony with this main idea of the 
 Second Gospel, the great Worker ever and anon 
 withdraws from the public gaze and the public 
 service to rest and refresh Himself. In almost 
 every case His retirements and His seclusion 
 were temporary and brief, and for specific ends. 
 Generally they mark a change or a crisis in His 
 Avork. Some of them are here noted. 
 
 (1) For prayer (i. 35). The previous day had 
 
120 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 been a long one of conflict with and victory over 
 the kingdom of sin and death. He now retires 
 that He may be refreshed and strengthened for 
 farther and even more taxing labors. He pre- 
 pares Himself in the desert for a second great 
 mission of love. It is by prayer and conscious 
 communion with the living God that His activi- 
 ties and self-sacrificing devotion to His work are 
 fed. 
 
 (2) From Pharisaic opposition (iii. Q, 7). The 
 withdrawal was from the synagogue of Caper- 
 naum to the open coast, and from the plots of 
 His enemies, plots which ripen fast in cities, 
 those hotbeds of intrigue. Herein He displays 
 a wise prudence. The effect of the miracle He 
 had wrought — that of healing the withered hand 
 — was very great. The scribes and Pharisees 
 were " filled with madness" (Luke vi. 11). The 
 Saviour had not merely broken their tradition, 
 but He had put them to silence before all the 
 people. They sought, therefore, to slay Him. 
 But something deeper and more needful even 
 than personal safety" moved Him to withdraw. 
 The twelve are to be selected and appointed to 
 their great mission (iii. 14). 
 
 (3) From unbelief (vi. 5, 6). Mighty things 
 are ascribed to faith ; *^ all things are possible to 
 him that believeth '' (ix. 23). But no less is un- 
 belief strong. ^^And he could there do no 
 
Gospel Accord'mg to Mark 121 
 
 miglity Avork . . . and He marveled because of 
 tlieir unbelief.'^ A fearful power is lodged in the 
 human will ; it can defeat even the gracious pur- 
 poses of the Lord Himself. Mark, the inspired 
 historian of Christ's energy and activities, tells 
 us that at Nazareth He could do no mighty work 
 because of unbelief. '' Unbelief ties up the hand 
 of God." And so Jesus retired from His own 
 town never agiun to return to it. Yet, here also 
 another blessed end is subserved — viz., the send- 
 ing forth of the twelve on their errand of mercy 
 (vi. 7). 
 
 (4) Ketirement at the death of John the Bap- 
 tist (vi. 31, 32). The flaming messenger of Je- 
 hovah, the New Testament Elijah was slain by 
 the New Testament Ahab, Herod Antipas. 
 John's death fell as a heavy shadow on the path 
 of Jesus, for it was a personal menace ; it fore- 
 shadowed His own rejection and crucifixion (ix. 
 9-13). But here likewise the withdrawal is suc- 
 ceeded by a wondrous ministry, /. e., as the hos- 
 tility intensifies His display of power increases. 
 He feeds five thousand, and Avalks on the sea as 
 on dry land. 
 
 (5) After conflict with the Pharisees (vii. 24). 
 The Pharisaic party in Eastern Galilee were 
 deeply oflended with His teaching (Matt. xv. 
 12) ; Herod was inquiring about Him (Luke ix. 
 9), and his inquiries boded nothing but ill. Jesus 
 
122 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 accordingly withdrew into the regions of Tyre 
 and Sidon. But here also His retirement is 
 marked by a most significant act, namely, that 
 of curing the demoniac daughter of a heathen 
 mother, a prediction and promise of deliverance 
 to flow out to the whole gentile world ; for Christ 
 at Tyre " domesticated the heathen world,'^ as one 
 has said. 
 
 (6) To CsesareaPhilippi (viii. 27). A crisis is 
 here to be noted in His ministry. He withdraws 
 from direct evangelistic effort, and the character 
 of His teaching undergoes a change. Now for 
 the first time in this Gospel He announces His 
 approaching death (viii. 31). Six days after, the 
 transfiguration took place (ix. 1, 2). The retire- 
 ment was of deliberate intention. He will fix 
 in their minds the tremendous fact of His rejec- 
 tion by the people of Israel, and the tragic end 
 now so near at hand. But He will thrill their 
 hearts also with the assurance of His resurrection 
 and power and glory (2 Pet. i. 16-21). 
 
 (7) Eetirement to Bethany (xi. 11, 19). "He 
 looked round about upon all things, and ... he 
 w^ent out unto Bethany with the twelve.'^ This 
 significant inspection and the subsequent w^ith- 
 drawal were followed the next day by the blast- 
 ing of the barren fig tree, and by the expulsion 
 of the greedy traffickers from the temple (xi. 11- 
 19). Both were signs to Israel, deep, ominous 
 
Gospel According to Mark 123 
 
 signs, if only they had had eyes to see and hearts 
 to read and apply their meaning. At the begin- 
 ning of His ministry He had purged the sacred 
 precincts of these unseemly traders (John ii. 14). 
 But they returned again, tolerated if not joined 
 by the scribes and priests themselves (xi. 18). 
 How deep the corruption had sunk into the 
 nation^s life the incident only too clearly evinces. 
 How insensible the heart to the holy claims of 
 God and to purity in His worship when the 
 *' house of prayer " is turned by zealous ritualists 
 into a " den of robbers " ! The fruitless fig tree, 
 therefore, with its abundant leaves — holding out 
 a false promise, a delusion and a cheat — becomes 
 thus the fitting symbol of the rulers and people, 
 with their empty profession and their heartless 
 formalism. Its blasting was at once both a para- 
 ble and a prophecy : a parable, teaching the 
 power of believing prayer ; a prophecy of IsraeFs 
 impending judgment. Like the blasted tree, poor 
 Israel stands to this day a blackened ruin, scathed 
 with lightning, leafless as well as fruitless. Is it 
 forever ? So the words seem to intimate : ^^ No 
 man eat fruit of thee hereafter forever.'^ Paul, 
 guided by the Spirit of God, answers : ^' I say, 
 then, hath God cast away his people ? God for- 
 bid. God hath not cast away his people which 
 he foreknew '' (Rom. xi. 1, 2). In the words our 
 Lord employed, there is a merciful limitation — a 
 
124 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 hint that Israel is not totally and finally cast off. 
 " Forever " is literally " for the age." " No man 
 eat fruit of thee henceforward for the age'' 
 (Trench). The day will come, perhaps is not 
 now far off, when poor Israel with her age-long 
 sufferings will be restored to the favor and alle- 
 giance of God, and be clothed with the richest 
 fruits of all trees of the Lord's planting. 
 
 The Saviour's retirements in Mark were but 
 recruitings for fresh service, or a preparation for 
 a change of service, or withdrawals from an op- 
 position which He would not precipitate. The 
 final crisis and consummation must come only at 
 the predetermined time, and He would do nought 
 to hasten it. So truly human was He that He 
 needed rest and refreshment, as do we all. But 
 He suffered such retirement to be intruded upon, 
 if the people and their necessities would have it 
 so ; for His time He did not claim for Himself. 
 No impatient word escaped His lips, no look be- 
 tokened His disappointment when His rest was in- 
 terrupted ; for He was here to serve, not to be 
 served (x. 45). He was not our servant, but 
 God's. In serving man He but fulfilled the will 
 of God, which was His paramount aim. 
 
 7. This Servant and Minister was Himself the 
 Lord of Glory. While Mark has for his chief 
 theme the perfect service of the Lord Jesus, and 
 while he adheres to it with unwavering steadfast- 
 
Gos.j)cl According to Mark 125 
 
 ness, nevertliclcss all through the narrative there 
 keep flashing out the gleams and rays of one who 
 is more than man, who is the Son of God, the 
 equal of the Father. The c^loak which this divine 
 Servant wears is an earthly one, the one He in 
 His matchless grace and love took upon Him 
 when He came to do our neglected duty and save 
 us from our sins, but ever and anon the cloak is 
 allowed to swing open, and lo, there is ^CQn 
 blazing on His breast the star of supreme royalty. 
 Christ's divine power appears in Mark in the 
 record of His miracles. Eighteen are found in 
 this Gospel, distributed thus : over diseases, eight 
 (i. 30, 31 ; i. 40-42 ; ii.' 3-1 2 ; iii. 1-5 ; v. 25-34 ; 
 vii. 32-35 ; viii. 22-25 ; x. 46-52). Over nature, 
 five (iv. 36-39 ; vi. 41-44 ; vi. 48-51 ; viii. 1-9 ; 
 xi. 11-14, 20). Over demons, /owr (i. 23-28 ; v. 
 1-13 ; vii. 24-30 ; ix. 17-27). Over death, one 
 (v. 35-42). In all these mighty works He 
 acts as the Almighty, the Greater and Ruler. 
 He deals with leprosy as the Jehovah of Israel 
 alone could deal with it. He feeds the thou- 
 sands of His people as Jehovah of old had fed 
 them. The elements bow to His word in 
 obedience to His divine will. Demons tremble 
 and obey, and men feel the majesty of His 
 presence. Perfect as was His obedience and 
 self-emptying as was His humiliation, yet always 
 and evervwhere He is Jehovah's equal. The 
 
126 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 close of Mark characteristically announces : ^^ So 
 then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken unto 
 them, was received up into heaven, and sat down 
 at the right hand of God. And they went forth, 
 and preached everywhere, the Lord working with 
 them, and confirming the word by signs that 
 followed. Amen'' (R. V.). After the ascension, 
 this Gospel reminds us that Christ, although now 
 in the highest glory, is still the worker, associating 
 Himself with His toiling servants on the earth. 
 
 A brief outline of the events the night of the 
 arrest, " the seven Avords from the cross,'' and the 
 resurrection, is here appended. The order fol- 
 lowed is mainly that of Westcott : 
 
 A. Night of Arrest. 
 
 Last Supper 6.00 p. m. 
 
 Agouj^ 11.00 p.m. 
 
 Betrayal Midnight. 
 
 Led to High Priest's House l.OO a. m. 
 
 Before Annas 2.00 A. M. 
 
 Before Caiaphas 3.00 A. m. 
 
 Condemned by Sanhedrin 4.30 A, M. 
 
 Before Pilate 5.00 A. M. 
 
 Before Herod 5.30 a. m. 
 
 Before Pilate again • • • 6.00 a. m. 
 
 Sentence pronounced 6.30 (7.00) A. M. 
 
 Crucifixion 9.00 A. M. 
 
 Death 3.00 p. M. 
 
 B. The Seven Words from the Cross. 
 
 (1) Before the Darkness : 
 
 " Father, forgive them ; for they know not what 
 they do." 
 
Gospel According to Mark 127 
 
 " To-day shalt thou be with me in paradise." 
 
 " Woman, behold thy son ! behold thy mother ! " 
 
 (2) During the Darkness : 
 
 "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" 
 
 (3) After Darkness : 
 
 "I thirst." 
 
 " It is finished." 
 
 " Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit." 
 
 C. The Resurrection. 
 
 Rolling away of the stone Very early. 
 
 Mary Magdalene and other women .... 5.00 a. m. 
 
 (Approximate time). 
 
 Vision of angel and his message 
 
 Vision of " two young men " 
 
 Visit of Peter and John 
 
 Vision of two angels to Mary Magdalene . 
 
 The Lord revealed to Mary 
 
 The Lord revealed to other women . . 
 The Lord revealed to the two (Emmaus) 
 
 The Lord revealed to Peter after 4 p. m. 
 
 The Lord revealed to the Eleven 8 p. m. 
 
 A remark or two concerning the hours given 
 above may be indulged. Of course the times can 
 be only approximately fixed. Some of them may 
 be wrong, and it seems that some of the hours of 
 the crucifixion are involved in deep obscurity. 
 Keference is had specially to Mark xv. 25 : " And 
 it Avas the third hour ; and they crucified him ;'' 
 (John xix. 14): "And it was the preparation of 
 the passover, and about the sixth hour." Mark\s 
 ''third hour'' corresponds to our 9 A. M. If 
 John follows the Hebrew method of computing 
 the hours, then his " about the sixth hour " cor- 
 
 . 5.30 A. 
 
 M. 
 
 . G.OO A. 
 
 M. 
 
 . 6.30 A. 
 
 M. 
 
 . 6.30 A. 
 
 M. 
 
 . 7.00 A. 
 
 M. 
 
 7 to 8 A. 
 
 M. 
 
 4 to 6 p. 
 
 M. 
 
128 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 responds with (about) our noon. But if John 
 follows the Roman method, as many very able 
 interpreters think, then his ^' sixth '^ is also our 
 Q A. M. There appear to have been two com- 
 panies or separate groups of women who started 
 to the sepulcher; and three separate visions of 
 angels — e. g., the " young man '^ of Mark xvi. 5 ; 
 Matthew xxviii. 5 ; " two men '^ (Luke xxiv. 4) ; 
 "two angels'^ seen by Mary (John xx. 12). 
 
 It is noteworthy that Jesus' first utterance on 
 the cross is the prayer, " Father, forgive them '' — 
 He employs the title Father, for matters had not 
 yet come to the worst : at the close He uses it 
 again, "Father, into thy hands,'' for matters had 
 now passed their worst. But in the climax of His 
 sufferings, in the mysterious, inexplicable hiding 
 of the Father's face. He drops the title of Father, 
 falls back on His own faith, on pure faith alone, 
 and says, "My God, my God" — (Brown). 
 Summary. 
 
 In the Gospel by Mark Jesus is presented to us : 
 
 1. As a Preacher most tender and true. 
 
 2. As a Healer almighty. 
 
 3. As a Master over nature. 
 
 4. As a Master over the invisible world. 
 
 5. As a Servant most obedient and faithful. 
 • 6. As the Doer of God's perfect will. 
 
 7. As the Minister of Jehovah, our blessed De- 
 liverer. 
 
THE 
 
 GOSPEL ACCOEDING TO LUKE 
 
THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO LUKE 
 
 The author of the Third Gospel was Luke, 
 " the belov^ed physician.'' Although the book of 
 The Acts and this Gospel are from his pen, the in- 
 formation we have of him is very scant. Legend 
 has been busy with his name, as it has with the 
 names of other primitive Christians. We learn 
 on pretty good authority (Eusebius and Jerome) 
 that he was a native of Antioch, but whether a 
 proselyte to the Jewish faith before his conversion 
 to Christianity or not is unknown. It is related 
 that he was one of the seventy sent forth by tlie 
 Saviour, and one of the two with whom the risen 
 Lord conversed in the memorable journey to Era- 
 maus. But except that he is the only evangelist 
 who records these facts there exists no ground for 
 tlie tradition. Still less evidence is there for the 
 legend that he was a painter, and that lie was 
 crucified on an olive tree in Greece. It is quite 
 likely that he died in Greece, but whether as a 
 martyr, or indeed luider what circumstances, can- 
 not now be ascertained. 
 
 Passing from uncertain tradition, it may be af- 
 firmed with confidence that the Third Gospel rep- 
 
 131 
 
132 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 resents the glad tidings of salvation as proclaimed 
 by the apostle Paul. Luke was the intimate 
 friend aijd fellow-laborer of Paul (Col. iv. 14 ; 2 
 Tim. iv. 11 ; Philem. 24). Significant is the ex- 
 change of the historical " they '^ in The Acts into 
 the autobiographical " we '^ (xvi. 8 ; x. 11). From 
 Troas to Philippi Luke was one of the apostle's 
 companions. With him he journeyed to Jerusa- 
 lem (Acts xxi.), and with him he seems to have 
 spent much of the two years of PauFs imprison- 
 ment at Caesarea. With him he sailed for Italy, 
 whither the apostle was sent that his case might 
 be adjudicated at Nero's bar. With him he re- 
 mained during most of his long captivity at 
 Rome. The last mention of Luke in the epistles 
 occurs in 2 Tim. iv. 11, and very creditable to him 
 it is — " only Luke is with me." While " all they 
 of Asia " had turned away from him, this faith- 
 ful friend stood by the aged prisoner, he alone. 
 Paul's affection for the " beloved physician " was 
 unfeigned and unwavering. If the " brother 
 whose praise in the gospel is spread through all 
 the churches " (2 Cor. viii. 8-18), was Luke, as 
 many think, his prominence as a coworker with 
 Paul is fully attested. 
 
 Ancient and trustworthy witnesses bear testi- 
 mony to the fact that Luke's Gospel is to a large 
 degree a reproduction of Paul's preaching. 
 *' Luke the companion of Paul put down in a 
 
Gospel According to Luke 133 
 
 book the gospel preached by him (Paul)^^ (Ire- 
 iia?us, about A. D. 180). ^' Luke's digest was usu- 
 ally ascribed to Paul'' (TertuUiau, about A. d. 
 200). The historian Eusebius (about A. D. 300) 
 says that some were accustomed to refer Paul's 
 words, " according to my gospel," to . that of 
 Luke. 
 
 There is a close connection between Paul and 
 Luke as to the preeminence which each gives to 
 the crreat doctrines of salvation. We shall see as 
 we advance in this study that Luke presents to 
 the world a Saviour fitted for the redemption of 
 all, and offered to all. This is Paul's method like- 
 wise. To the Jew he preached Jesus of Nazareth 
 as the Messiah promised of old to the fathers — 
 " out of the Scriptures opening and alleging that 
 . . . this Jesus ... is the Christ" (Acts xvii. 
 3). To the gentiles he proclaimed the gospel of 
 a Redeemer for all men without exception or dis- 
 tinction. In such a gospel he gloried, in it he 
 toiled wdth a devotion and an ardor that never 
 flagged — a Redeemer suited to the needs of all, 
 offered to all, Jew, Greek, Roman, barbarian, 
 philosopher and dullard, noble and slave. Such 
 a Saviour, divine-human, for all, it is the main 
 purpose of Luke to reveal. 
 
 The motive for its composition is stated (i. 1-4). 
 The writings to wdiich Luke refers were not 
 Matthew and Mark, but accounts of the Lord 
 
134 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Jesus then in circulation among the Christians. 
 A most wonderful life had just closed by a tragic 
 death and glorious resurrection. Extraordinary 
 events filled the thoughts of men. ^^ Many had 
 taken in hand^' to tell the marvelous story. 
 Such writings were floating about. They may 
 have been more or less helpful to readers : we 
 have no means of knowing, for they are totally 
 lost. But they w^ere not satisfactory. They did 
 not tell all that should be told, or they did not 
 tell it accurately. They lacked an essential ele- 
 ment, they were not inspired of the Spirit of 
 God. Accordingly, Luke set himself to the task 
 of writing " the certainty '' of those things " most 
 surely believed among us.'' Very noteworthy is 
 the clause in this introduction, " having had per- 
 fect understanding of all things from the very 
 first." The words are expressive of exact re- 
 search, and of the faithfulness with which he nar- 
 rates the facts. " Having traced the course of 
 all things accurately from the first," is one render- 
 ing of the words (R. V.) ; " having followed up 
 (or investigated) step by step all things from their 
 source," is another. Luke's Gosj^el differs very 
 materially, therefore, from those other writings ; 
 for, (1) he goes back farther than they did, "to 
 the first;" (2) he presents the great theme in a 
 consecutive form, " in order ; " (3) his " sources " 
 are trustworthy, for they were " eyewitnesses and 
 
Gospel According to Lake 135 
 
 miuisters of the word ;" (4) Luke's account, tiiere- 
 fore, is more complete, more accurate, and more 
 authoritative. Luke certainly wishes his friend, 
 Theophilus, and his readers generally, to under- 
 stand that what he has written can be implicitly 
 trusted. He gives no hint of the channel through 
 which he received his '^ perfect knowledge," save 
 that it was from the " eyewitnesses and ministers 
 of the word ;" he only assures us that his narra- 
 tive of the Lord Jesus Christ is absolutely true 
 and trustworthy. 
 
 Speculation about the "sources" is profitless. 
 To those who, like the present writer, hold the 
 doctrine of the plenary inspiration of the Bible, 
 such speculation is arid, sometimes rationalistic. 
 ^ And yet the conjecture that Luke gathered his 
 material for the composition of this matchless 
 Gospel during the period of Paul's imprisonment 
 at Cffisarea may not be far wrong. Jerusalem 
 was only a little more than fifty miles distant 
 from Caesarea, and easy of access. Luke could 
 readily repair, if necessary, to the holy city and 
 confer with those still living who had been in 
 the Lord's company. He could there find the 
 genealogical records from which to trace the 
 Lord's human descent from Adam to Joseph and 
 Mary. He had Paul as an inspired helper in his 
 blessed work. The "eyewitnesses" were pri- 
 marily the apostles who became also " ministers 
 
136 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 of the word." They transmitted the sacred de- 
 posit of the truth found in the four gospels. 
 Above all, he had the Spirit of tlie living God as 
 his sure guide, and therefore we can confidingly 
 rely on Luke's accuracy and fidelity, 
 I. Some of Luke's distinctive features. 
 
 1. The Third Gospel has more of a strictly his- 
 torical cast than the others. This is announced 
 as one purpose of the writer ; he traces the great 
 history in an orderly manner " from the first.'' 
 He goes back to the beginning, and tells us much 
 of the family and the birth of John the Baptist, 
 of Jesus' mother, and the birth of the Saviour 
 and its attendant marvels. The first two chap- 
 ters are singularly full of details. There is like 
 fullness in succeeding chapters. And what is 
 characteristic is that the history is carried on 
 beyond the resurrection to the ascension. For 
 Luke's Gospel is the history of redemption in the 
 person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. 
 
 2. Luke pays careful attention to dates — a 
 prime requisite in history. Thus, he notes that 
 Herod was the king of Judgea Avhen Gabriel the 
 angel announced the birth of John to his aston- 
 ished father ; that six months thereafter the same 
 heavenly messenger foretold Jesus' birth to Mary 
 His mother ; that Jesus was born at the time of 
 the " first enrollment," when Cyrenius was gover- 
 nor of Syria (ii. 1-3) ; that John entered upon his 
 
Gospel According to Luke 137 
 
 ministry in the fifteenth year of Tiberius (iii. 1, 
 2). He notes the cireumcision of the chikl 
 (ii. 21) ; His presentation in the temple (ii. 22) ; 
 His age of twelve when found in the temple 
 disputing with the doctors (ii. 42) ; and His age 
 of '^ about thirty " when He began His public 
 ministry. 
 
 3. The Third Gospel contains various refer- 
 ences to the institutions, customs, geography, and 
 history of Judsea, and the Jewish people at 
 the time of the advent. And these references 
 are so minute and particular that it would be 
 most difficult, if not impossible, for any but a 
 contemporary to maintain the definiteness and 
 general accuracy of statement that we here find 
 on almost every page. 
 
 4. The introduction of inspired songs is an- 
 other peculiarity of Luke. We read of the 
 salutation of Elisabeth when Mary visited her 
 (i. 42-45); the song of the virgin mother (i. 46- 
 55) ; of Zechariah Avhen speech was restored to 
 him (i. 68-79) ; the rhythmical prayer of the 
 aged Simeon (ii. 29-32). At the Saviour's birth 
 a chorus of angelic song sweeps through the 
 midnight sky (ii. 13, 14), and the shepherds 
 glorify and praise God (ii. 20). How much 
 of thanksgiving and of joy is found in this 
 Gospel ! It begins with songs of praise ; it ends 
 with gladness and rejoicing on the part of dis- 
 
138 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 ciples. In Mark we find much of Christ^s sor- 
 rows in His ministry, but little of joy ; here 
 there is sorrow likewise, but more of joy. 
 
 5. There are here details concerning the 
 Saviour that stamp this Gospel with a peculiarity 
 of its own. Only some of these details are 
 noted. One is the prolonged journey toward 
 Jerusalem related in chapters ix. 61-xix. 27, 
 a section passed over almost in silence by the 
 other gospels ; and yet it is one filled with some 
 of the most remarkable events in the Lord's 
 ministry. Another, the record of the sinful 
 woman at Jesus' feet in Simon's house (vii. 35- 
 50) ; His tears over impenitent Jerusalem (xix. 
 41-44) ^; His prayer for Peter in the extremity 
 of his danger (xxii. 31) ; His ^' look" upon Peter 
 after the third denial (xxii. 61) ; His agony and 
 bloody sweat in the garden of sorrow (xxii. 44). 
 Of His seven utterances on the cross three are 
 found in Luke — viz., the prayer for His mur- 
 derers ; the promise to the dying malefactor ; and 
 the prayer to the Father. His appearing to the 
 two on the way to Emmaus is peculiar to Luke 
 (xxiv. 13-35). So also His parting blessing to 
 the disciples at His ascension (xxiv. 50-53). 
 
 ^ The word Luke uses is a strong one, meaning to weep 
 audibly. At the grave of Lazarus He wept (John xi. 35), 
 but it was silent tears He shed ; here He wept aloud, no doiibt 
 sobbed aloud, in His profound grief. He is genuinely 
 human, tender, pitiful even to tears. 
 
Gospel According to Luke 139 
 
 These are some of the details of this Gospel. 
 Others will be noticed as this study proceeds. 
 II. Analysis. 
 
 1. Introduction, i. 1-4. 
 
 2. The Nativity, i. 5-ii. 
 
 (1) Announcement of the Forerunner, i. 5-25. 
 
 (2) Announcement of the Saviour, i. 26-38. 
 
 (3) Joy of Elisabeth and Mary, i. 39-56. 
 
 (4) Birth of John, i. 57-80. 
 
 (5) Birth of the Saviour, ii. 1-7. 
 
 (6) Songs of Thanksgiving, ii. 8-38. 
 
 (7) Childhood and Growth of Jesus, ii. 
 
 39-52. 
 
 3. Preparation for the Ministry, iii.-iv. 13. 
 
 (1) Preaching of John, iii. 1-20. 
 
 (2) Baptism of Jesus, iii. 21, 22. 
 
 (3) Genealogy, iii. 23-38. 
 
 (4) Jesus' Trial and Victory, iv. 1-13. 
 
 4. Early Ministry in Galilee, iv. 14-vii. 
 
 (1) First Circuit, Sermon at Nazareth, iv. 
 
 14-31. 
 
 (2) Many Miracles wrought, iv. 32-v. 26. 
 
 (3) Call of Levi, Discourses, Call of Apos- 
 
 tles, V. 27-vi. 16. 
 
 (4) Sermon in the Plain, vi. 17-49. 
 
 (5) Miracles, Discourse on John, on For- 
 
 giveness, vii. 
 
 5. Later Ministry in Galilee, and Journey 
 Northward, viii.-ix. 50. 
 
140 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 (1) The first Parable, viii. 1-18. 
 
 (2) His Mother's visit, viii. 19-21. 
 
 (3) Miracles — Demoniac of Gadara, Bloody 
 
 Issue, Jairus' daughter, viii. 22-56. 
 
 (4) Mission of the Twelve, and succeeding 
 
 Events, ix. 1-17. 
 
 (5) At Cnesarea Philippi, prediction of His 
 
 death, ix. 18-27. 
 
 (6) Transfiguration, prediction of His death, 
 
 ix. 28-45. 
 
 (7) Dispute as to the greatest, ix. 46-50. 
 
 6. Closing Ministry, commonly called the 
 Peraean Ministry, ix. 51-xix. 28. 
 
 (1) Spirit of true Dikjipleship, ix. 51-62. 
 
 (2) Mission of the Seventy, x. 1-24. 
 
 (3) A Lawyer; Mary and Martha, x. 25-41. 
 
 (4) Discourse on Prayer, xi. 1-13. 
 
 (5) Discourses touching Pharisaism, xi. 
 
 14-12. 
 
 (6) Teachings ; Parables ; Miracles, xiii. 
 
 18-30. 
 
 (7) Final Stage of the Journey to Jeru- 
 
 salem, xiii. 31-xviii. 28. 
 
 7. Last Days of the Saviour, xix. 29-xxii. 46. 
 
 (1) In the City, and at the Temple, xix. 
 
 29-48. " 
 
 (2) A day of Questions, xx. 
 
 (3) The Olivet Prophecy, xxi. 
 
 (4) The Last Supper, xxii. 1-38. 
 
Gospel According to Luke 141 
 
 (5) The Garden of Sorrow, xxii. 39-46. 
 
 8. The Arrest, Trial, Crucifixion, and Burial, 
 xxii. 47-xxiii. 
 
 9. The Resurrection and Ascension, xxiv. 
 
 A brief remark on section 6 of the above 
 analysis may not be out of place. It is the sec- 
 tion entitled ordinarily, " The Peraan Ministry " 
 — viz., chapters ix. 51-xix. 28. It is generally 
 believed that the section in question covers sev- 
 eral months of the closing ministry of our Lord. 
 Luke's narrative here stands almost alone; Mat- 
 thew and Mark touch it but slightly. Does 
 Luke in the section describe three distinct jour- 
 neys to Jerusalem, or only one journey which he 
 breaks into three stages or parts ? Let the fol- 
 lowiuir texts be noted: "He stead fasti v set his 
 flice to go to Jerusalem'' (ix. 51). ''And he 
 went . . . journeying toward Jerusalem" (xiii. 
 22). " And it came to pass, as he went to Jeru- 
 salem " (xvii. 11). The last mention is found in 
 xix. 28, which, obviously, must be placed at the 
 end of the whole journey or journeys. It is 
 quite possible to view the whole section as one 
 journey which Luke breaks into three stages, as 
 marked by the texts cited above. It is just as 
 probable that he here weaves three distinct jour- 
 neys into one continuous narrative. This last 
 view is supported by the following arrangement 
 of the journeys (Wieseler ; C. W. Hodge) : 
 
142 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 (1) To Feast of Tabernacles, Luke ix. 51 ; cp. 
 John vii. 10. 
 
 (2) To Bethany, Luke xiii. 22; cp. John xi. 1. 
 
 (3) To Passover, Luke xvii. 11 ; xix. 28 ; cp. 
 John xi. 65. 
 
 It is claimed that the narrative in John fits 
 into the various breaks that are noted in Luke. 
 At any rate, whether Luke gives three distinct 
 journeys or one divided into three stages, we 
 may be certain this entire section stretches over 
 considerable time, and is filled with details that 
 are largely passed over in silence by the gospels 
 of Matthew and Mark. 
 
 III. Design of Luke. It is mainly to set forth 
 the perfections of the Son of man as the Friend 
 and Redeemer of men, the Saviour of all that 
 believe and receive Him. In Matthew, Jesus 
 meets the Jew as the Messiah, the promised De- 
 liverer. In Mark He meets the needy world as 
 the divine Minister to that need. In Luke He 
 meets the lost and ruined of our race as its Al- 
 mighty Saviour. Here Jesus is presented as the 
 Son of man, the Friend of universal man. Un- 
 doubtedly He is here also set forth as the Mes- 
 siah, the Minister of Jehovah, and the Son of 
 God. His great offices, of prophet, priest, and 
 king, the dignity of His person and His majestic 
 relations with God the Father are all in Luke as 
 they are in the other gospels. But Luke's chief 
 
Gospel According to Luke 143 
 
 design is to reveal Christ as a man, witli all the 
 sympathies, feelings, and growing powers of a 
 man — as a Savionr, therefore, smted to all, and 
 sent to all. 
 
 Messiah was to be a king, to have a kingdom 
 and loyal subjects. Matthew deals mainly with 
 this feature of the Lord's manifold relations. 
 Furthermore, Christ was to be the Minister of 
 God, and perfectly accomplish the divine will on 
 the earth. It was the main purpose of Mark to 
 exhibit Him to us in this most important aspect 
 of His blessed work. He is the second man, the 
 Lord of glory, who fulfills all God's law and glori- 
 fies Him perfectly in the w^orid. 
 
 But Messiah was to fill another office, perform 
 another function, diiferent somewhat from those 
 just mentioned, and no less essential to the exe- 
 cution of God's purposes of grace and mercy 
 toward men. In a very special sense Messiah 
 was to be the Redeemer of His people. He was 
 to discharge in full the aw^ful debt tliey had in- 
 curred, and to secure their complete deliverance. 
 Their ransom w^as to be effected by the payment 
 of every obligation to the last farthing. This 
 and much more the Redeemer must accomplish 
 to be true to His supreme function. 
 
 The terms. Redeemer, Redeem, Redemption, 
 are of frequent use in the Scriptures. Jehovah 
 Himself is called Redeemer again and again (e. </, 
 
144 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Ps. xix. 14; Isa. xliii. 14; xliv. 6). But what is 
 meant by this term ? Lev. xxv. opens the doc- 
 trine of the redeemer. The law defines the per- 
 son of the redeemer. He must be a near rela- 
 tive, a kinsman of him for whom he acts (Lev. 
 xxv. 25). No one else could act in that capacity. 
 Thus we see in the Book of Ruth that Boaz 
 could redeem the alienated inheritance of Naomi 
 because he was near of kin to her husband (ii. 1 ; 
 iii. 12). So also Jeremiah had the legal right to 
 buy the property of Hanameel, for the right of 
 redemption was his, because he Avas closely re- 
 lated to the owner (Jer. xxxii. 6-8). This was 
 the first qualification one was to have in order to 
 be a redeemer — his blood- relationship with him 
 for whom he must act. The word employed to 
 designate the office of Redeemer indicates this : 
 Goel, a kinsman-redeemer. 
 
 His office is next defined in the chapter. It is 
 threefold : (1) He redeems the inheritance (Lev. 
 xxv. 25) ; (2) He redeems the i>erson (verses 
 47-50) ; (3) He executes judgment on the ene- 
 mies and oppressors of him for whom he acts. 
 This feature of the kinsman-redeemer appears 
 in such passages as Num. xxxv. 19-21 ; Dent, 
 xix. 12, where the words, ^^ avenger of blood," 
 stand for the Gael, the redeemer near of. kin. 
 The redemption of the person is seen in the re- 
 markable words of Job (xix. 25-27), wherein he 
 
Gospel According to Luke 145 
 
 expresses his assured confidence that his Kinsman- 
 Redeemer shall yet appear on earth, and that He 
 will vindicate him and his righteous cause by 
 bringing deliverance and resurrection. 
 
 Luke's object is mainly to reveal the redemp- 
 tion wrought by our glorious Kinsman-Redeemer, 
 the Lord Jesus Christ. Here for the first time in 
 the New Testament do we meet with the word 
 redemption, "for he hath visited and wrought 
 redemption for his people '' (i. 68, R. V.). Anna 
 " spoke of him to all them that looked for re- 
 demption in Jerusalem '' (ii. 38). The disheart- 
 ened disciples on the memorable journey to 
 Emmaus said to the stranger who had joined 
 them, "We trusted that it had been he who 
 should have redeemed Israer' (xxiv. 21). Christ 
 Himself condenses in this Gospel His whole mis- 
 sion into one most pregnant sentence, " The Son 
 of man is come to seek and to save that which 
 was lost'' (xix. 10), a sentence that discloses at 
 once the lost condition of men, the person and 
 the mission of Him whose noble aim it is to 
 redeem. At His birth the angel announced to 
 the wondering shepherds : " Fear not : for, be- 
 hold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which 
 shall be to all people. For unto you is born this 
 day in the city of David a Saviour, which is 
 Christ the Lord" (ii. 10, 11). This angelic 
 greeting is the very heart of Luke's Gospel. 
 
 10 
 
146 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Very suggestive are the words in the ancient 
 law of Israel, " If thy brother be waxen poor, 
 and sell some of his possession, then shall his 
 kinsman that is next to him come, and shall re- 
 deem that which his brother sold" (Lev. xxv. 
 25). There must be willingness on the part of 
 the kinsman to undertake for the distressed 
 brother, and power to execute what he under- 
 takes. That divinely appointed provision was a 
 dim shadow of what our great Kinsman-Re- 
 deemer would in due time accomplish for all His 
 people. He, too, would both voluntarily and 
 effectively undertake for them, would redeem 
 their persons, their lost inheritance, and at length 
 execute vengeance on their foes — sickness, death, 
 the grave, and Satan. And so w^e read, " The 
 Redeemer shall come to Zion " (Isa. lix. 20). 
 And He will come willingly, gladly, for it is 
 thus announced by Himself, ^^ Lo ! I come : I de- 
 light to do thy will, O my God " (Ps. xl. 7, 8 ; 
 cp. Heb. X. 7-10). 
 
 Let us see how this precious office of the 
 Kinsman-Redeemer is worked out by our evan- 
 gelist. 
 
 1. The Incarnation. If Jehovah Himself is 
 to be the Redeemer of men He must assume 
 their nature, must in a true and proper sense be 
 identified w4th them. An Egyptian, a Syrian, a 
 Babylonian never could have been the deliverer 
 
Gospel According to Luke 147 
 
 of an Israelite, for he lacked the first essential 
 qualification — viz., blood-relationship. The lle- 
 dcemer must be "near of kin/^ In His divine 
 personality our Lord had the power, but not the 
 absolute right to redeem. He needed to become 
 our " kinsman '' in order to possess the right to 
 offer the price of redemption. Accordingly, He 
 took our very nature, was made " in the likeness 
 of sinful flesh '^ (Rom. viii. 3) ; became bone of our 
 bone and flesh (Eph. v. 30). " Forasmuch then as 
 the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he 
 also Himself likewise took part of the same ; . . . . 
 Wherefore in all things it behooved him to be 
 made like unto his brethren, that he might be 
 a merciful and faithful high priest in things per- 
 taining to God, to make reconciliation for the 
 sins of the people" (Heb. ii. 14, 17). By thus 
 becoming related to us. He has the right, and 
 will enforce it, of redeeming the persons of His 
 believing people, and their forfeited heritage as 
 well. 
 
 This vital truth Luke never loses sight of 
 throughout his entire narrative. He who is here 
 presented to us is a true man, possessing a per- 
 fect and penetrating community of nature and 
 feeling with the lot of human kind. The nature 
 which He assumed was our nature, sin and sinful 
 propensities only excepted. Accordingly, Luke is 
 concerned above all the other gospels with the 
 
148 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 facts and events of His incarnation (chapters i., 
 ii.). Here we have the fullest communications 
 of Jesus^ birth, childhood, growth, domestic and 
 social life. Here alone do we learn something 
 of that mystery of mysteries, the Immaculate 
 Conception of the Son of Mary (i. 30-35). It is 
 but a glance that is vouchsafed us, a hint pro- 
 found, inscrutable, unfathomable ; but enough to 
 enable us to see that the ancient predictions of 
 the marvel that by woman alone should the 
 promised Deliverer appear in the Avorld (Gen. iii. 
 15; Isa. vii. 14), had literal fulfillment in the 
 birth of Jesus by the virgin chosen of God. It 
 is worthy of note that Luke alone records the glad 
 reception of the Redeemer by the saints living at 
 the time of His advent. Elisabeth greets her 
 kinswoman, Mary, Avith the joyful words : ^^ Blessed 
 art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit 
 of thy womb. And whence is this to me, that 
 the mother of my Lord should come to me?'' 
 (i. 42, 43). Zacharias sings with overflowing 
 joy : " Blessed be the Lord God of Israel ; for 
 he hath visited and redeemed his people, and 
 hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the 
 house of his servant David ; as he spake by the 
 mouth of his holy prophets, which have been 
 since the world began : that we should be saved 
 from our enemies, and from the hand of all that 
 hate us ; to perform the mercy promised to our 
 
Gospel According to Lake 1-10 
 
 fathers, and to remember his holy covenant ; 
 the oath which he sware to our father Abraham " 
 (i. G8-73). And Simeon, with the chiUl in his 
 aged arms, chants with exquisite tenderness and 
 contentment : *' Lord, now lettest thou thy serv- 
 ant depart in peace, according to thy word : 
 for mine eyes have seen thy salvation, which 
 thou hast prepared before the face of all people ; 
 a light to lighten the gentiles, and the glory of 
 thy people Israel '' (ii. 29-32). Nor is the voice 
 of the virgin mother herself silent in these hours 
 of happy exultation, for in that tuneful inspira- 
 tion which men call the ^^ Magnificat,'^ she says : 
 " My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit 
 hath rejoiced in God my Saviour .... He hath 
 holpen his servant Israel, in remembrance of 
 his mercy ; as he spake to our fathers, to 
 Abraham, and to his seed forever" (i. 46-55). 
 
 We learn from this Gospel that the humanity of 
 Jesus was perfectly natural in its development. 
 We read : " And the child grew, and waxed strong 
 in spirit, filled with wisdom : and the grace of God 
 w^as upon him" (ii. 40, 52). There Avas nothing 
 of unnatural progress in Him. All was orderly 
 increase. Xo unhealthy precocity marked the 
 holiest of infancies. His Avisdom kept pace with 
 His years. He was a child first, and afterwards 
 a man ; not a man in child's years. As a child 
 He was subject to Joseph and Mary (ii. 51), 
 
150 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 toiled with His own hands, w^as often covered 
 with the dust and shavings of His trade (iv. 22 ; 
 cp. Mark vi. 3). Nor do these notices of His 
 humanity terminate with His birth and child- 
 hood ; they are carried through His entire career. 
 Here we read that ^' He rejoiced in spirit/' that 
 "■ He wept over the city/' of His ^' kneeling 
 down in prayer/' and of the angel that strength- 
 ened Him. Here only we learn that "being in 
 an agony he prayed more earnestly and his 
 SAveat Avas as it were great drops of blood falling 
 down to the ground ; " and w^ith His latest 
 breath He cried, " Father, into thy hands I com-, 
 mend my spirit." And after the resurrection 
 here only, we are told He verified the reality of 
 His resurrection body by "sitting at meat with 
 them," by taking " a piece of a broiled fish, and 
 of an honeycomb," and eating it "before them;" 
 by bidding them "handle" Him, and "see/' 
 " for/' said He, and it is the only place where 
 the fact is recorded, "it is I m^^self" ... "a 
 spirit hath not flesli and bones, as ye see me 
 have." All is strikingly human. 
 
 Nothing can be more obvious than that Luke 
 demonstrates beyond all perad venture that the 
 Son of God became incorporate with our kind, 
 assumed our nature in union with Himself. And 
 this He did in order to secure for us the salvation 
 we so greatly need. In other words, the Saviour 
 
Gospel According to Lake 151 
 
 becomes our Kiusman-Redeemer by taking to 
 Himself " a true body and a rciisonable soul/' 
 
 2. Luke's genealogy shows that the Redeemer 
 is near of kin to all men, gentile and Jew alike 
 (iii. 23-38). Matthew's genealogy descends from 
 Abraham to Jesus, in accordance with his main 
 purpose ; for all the promises and predictions 
 made to Abraham and David (Matt. i. 1) must 
 find their accomplishment in the Lord Jesus. 
 Luke's genealogy ascends from Jesus to Adam, 
 in accordance with the chief design of the Spirit 
 here — viz., to show the close relationshij) of the 
 Redeemer with mankind-sinners. In this Gospel 
 the two heads of the race stand at the ends of 
 humanity's line — Jesus the head of the redeemed 
 humanity ; Adam, the head of the lost race. The 
 one fallen, sinful, transmitting sin and death to 
 all his posterity ; the other bringing redemption 
 to as many as receive it. 
 
 Let us not glance at this marvelous family 
 tree as though it were a dead, a withered tree. 
 All down the uncounted centuries that lie be- 
 tween the two heads — Jesus and Adam — God saw 
 :progress toward the fulfillment of His promise 
 and purpose in the man Christ Jesus, who as the 
 Kinsman-Redeemer was to endure -svhat the first 
 man Adam by his fall had wrought. 
 
 Whose genealogy is here traced ? Apparently 
 Joseph's (iii. 23). Have we then in Matthew 
 
152 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 and Luke two genealogies of Joseph ? If so, how 
 can the diiferences of names between David and 
 Joseph be accounted for ? For example, Matthew 
 says that Jacob was Joseph's father, whereas Luke 
 makes Heli his father. Various explanations are 
 offered, not one of wdiich is satisfactory on the 
 theory of both lists being those of Joseph. Per- 
 haps the view attended with the least difficulties 
 is that Matthew gives the legal descent of the 
 Saviour through the royal line to which Joseph 
 belonged ; Luke His lineal descent through 
 Mary. The terms of the covenant made w^itli 
 David and his house involve the necessity of 
 Messiah's being David's son and heir (2 Sam. 
 vii. 12, 13 ; Ps. Ixxxix. 3, 4, 19-32 ; cxxxii. 11). 
 In Rom. i. 3, Paul writes that Christ " was made 
 (born) of the seed of David according to the 
 flesh." Peter likewise testifies that Messiah was 
 to be of the " fruit of his [David's] loins" (Acts 
 ii. 30, 31 ; cp. Acts xiii. 23 ; 2 Tim. ii. 8, etc.). 
 These passages plainly require that Messiah must 
 be the lineal descendant of David. No other can 
 by any possibility satisfy these explicit terms. 
 But Joseph, Mary's husband, was not Jesus' 
 father, save in the legal sense. But the prom- 
 ised Deliverer must be of David's "seed ac- 
 cording to the flesh " — must be a literal flesh and 
 blood descendant. Therefore, His mother, Mary, 
 must have been a member of David's house as 
 
Gospel According to Luke 153 
 
 well as Joseph.^ So the angel promised, "and 
 the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of 
 his flither David '' (Luke i. 32). 
 
 Since Luke deals mainly with the Lord's char- 
 acter as Son of man, the Kinsman-Redeemer, it 
 seems fitting that he should record His real gene- 
 alogy. Mary was David's offspring through 
 Nathan, David's son. But a female could not be 
 inscribed in a Jewish register. Heli was her 
 father according to the Talmud (Pul. Comm. in 
 loc). Josej)h was the natural son of Jacob, 
 Mary the natural daughter of Heli ; Avhen mar- 
 ried, Joseph would of necessity be named h\ the 
 genealogy ; hence, we have in Luke, " Joseph 
 of Heli^'^' (iii. 23) (/. c, Son-in law).' 
 
 In his genealogy, Luke introduces the Re- 
 deemer to the world. He traces His descent up 
 to Adam, the father of the human family, thus 
 
 ^ Luke i. 36 offers no real difSculty. Elisabeth was of the 
 tribe of Levi, and Mary's kinswoman. But this does not 
 prove that Mary likewise was of that tribe. Levites inter- 
 married with other tribes. Aaron himself married into 
 Judah. (See Alf. " Speakers," Pulpit, and other Commen- 
 taries.) 
 
 2 The Greek article is omitted before Joseph, and is found 
 connected with every other name in Luke's list. This re- 
 markable fact indicates, first, that Joseph was not Jesus' 
 father ; second, that this is not Joseph's genealocry, but Heli's, 
 his father-in-law's. Two lines of descent from David unite in 
 Christ — the royal, through Solomon and Joseph ; the natural, 
 through Nathan, Heli, and Mary. 
 
154 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 linking Him with the whole race. Christ, there- 
 fore, can justly be presented as a Saviour to all 
 men, since He is related to all. Though born a. 
 Jew according to the flesh, the son of Abraham 
 and of David, He is nevertheless the son of 
 Adam, the son of man, the genuine oifspring of 
 humanity. 
 
 Very significant is Luke's last word in the 
 pedigree, " Adam which was the son of God.'' 
 Scripture knows nothing of the modern hypothe- 
 sis of evolution as applied to the origin of man. 
 The inspired Luke writes, " Adam was the son 
 of Qod," and his words invest the origin of our 
 race with a majesty and dignity utterly denied it 
 by the scientific theories and speculations now 
 so common. God's way is to tell us we were 
 made in His image and likeness; that we have 
 fallen through sin ; that we may recover all we 
 have lost and far more through Christ. Man's 
 way is to exalt humanity as it now is, and then 
 to degrade it to a level with the brutes in its 
 origin. True are the w^ords of Prof. Godet, 
 " Unless the image of God had been stamped 
 upon man, the Incarnation would have been 
 impossible." True also the deep words of 
 Bengel, ^^ All things are of God through Christ ; 
 and all things are brought back through Christ 
 to God." 
 
 3. The inscription indicates something of the 
 
Gospel According to Luke 155 
 
 Spirit's design in this Scripture. It is addressed 
 to Tlieophilus {Dear to God, the name signifies), 
 a man of rank, as the title " most excellent '* 
 shows (cp. Acts' xxiii. 26 ; xxiv. 3 ; xxvi. 25). 
 But better, he was a fellow-Christian with Luke, 
 and he is addressed more especially that he might 
 '' know the certainty of those things wherein he 
 had been instructed" (i. 4). Probably he was 
 a gentile, as was Luke himself. This is the only 
 Gospel addressed to a man. The Acts is likewise 
 inscribed to the same person. Why should the 
 Spirit of God thus affix the name of Theophilus 
 in the opening of the glad tidings He has to pre- 
 sent to the children of men ? It is characteristic 
 and most beautiful in its way. Jesus is here pre- 
 sented as the friend of universal man, Himself 
 also a man who comes into all the circumstances 
 of our humanity. He is not here so much the 
 Messiah, though, of course, that He is ; nor the 
 Servant of Jehovah, though that great office He 
 here fulfills no less than in Mark. Nor is He 
 set forth before us here preeminently as the Son 
 of God, though that likewise He most certainly 
 is. Here He is the man, claiming relationship 
 with every kind of men. It is fitting that Luke 
 should address his Gospel to a gentile, an alien as 
 the Jew believed. 
 
 4. The messages of both John and Jesus in 
 opening their respective ministries clearly indi- 
 
156 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 cate Luke's design. John announced as the 
 burden of his mission : " The voice of one cry- 
 ing in the wilderness, prej)are ye the way of the 
 Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley 
 shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall 
 be brought low ; and the crooked shall be made 
 straight, and the rough way shall be made 
 smooth " (iii. 4, 5). The imagery seems to be 
 taken from military operations. John's work 
 was like that of the pioneers who go before the 
 march of the king. It was his to remove ob- 
 structions, to overthrow barriers, to level up de- 
 pressions, and to level down heights. " And all 
 flesh shall see the salvation of God " (verse 6). 
 Luke alone introduces these precious words, for 
 he is bringing out the blessedness and univer- 
 sality of Christ's redemptive work. 
 
 In the first recorded sermon of Jesus in this 
 Gospel we read : ^^ The Spirit of the Lord is upon 
 me, because he hath anointed me to preach the 
 gospel to the poor ; he hath sent me to heal the 
 broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the cap- 
 tives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to 
 set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach 
 the acceptable year of the Lord" (iv. 18, 19). 
 He selected a passage that announces the sublime 
 object of His whole mission. He is commis- 
 sioned and sent of God, and divinely qualified 
 for His work. The characteristic features of 
 
Gospel According to Luhc 157 
 
 His mission are set forth ; He is to gladden the 
 poor with the good tidings, to comfort, and to -de- 
 livTr. How strikingly descriptive of the offices 
 of the Kinsman-Redeemer it is. " The accepta- 
 ble year '^ is an allusion to IsraePs great Jubilee 
 year (Lev. xxv. 10), the year of universal re- 
 lease both of person and property. Then, too, 
 He stops short in the quotation from Isaiah ; He 
 will not read, " and the day of vengeance of our 
 God," for that part of His work is to be executed 
 hereafter, not now. 
 
 5. The universality of His compassions is 
 here brought to view. In Luke, Christ is both 
 human and humane. He has peculiar affection 
 for little children. The other evangelists also 
 mention this. But Luke commonly adduces 
 additional circumstances that discover the Lord's 
 gentleness and tenderness. Those that are 
 brought to Him are called "infants" (xviii. 15), 
 and it is the only place in the gospels where the 
 epithet is employed in such connection : " babes " 
 is its real meaning ; twice it is used of the child 
 Jesus (ii. 12, 16), the babe in "swaddling 
 clothes," the babe "lying in a manger" — how 
 strikingly human it all is ! Here we are told 
 that Jairus' daughter w^as an "only daughter," 
 and " about twelve years of age." So, too, the 
 widow of Nain's son was " the only son of his 
 mother." Let it be observed that the details of 
 
158 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 the Saviour^s childhood and youth found so 
 largely in Luke not only establish His incarna- 
 tion, but they seem to be designed to reveal Him 
 as adapted to sympathize with little children, and 
 to help them in all their distresses, since He 
 Himself, was a child, and had experience of all 
 that child-life is. ^' They brought unto Him their 
 babes '' " that He should touch them/' He is no 
 less compassionate and tender now, though glori- 
 fied. He still " can be touched,'^ for He still is 
 our Kinsman-Redeemer. 
 
 In this Gospel Woman is specially honored. 
 At His birth, during His ministry, at the cruci- 
 fixion, after His resurrection, woman's place in 
 Luke is very prominent. Those that ministered 
 to Him out of their substance are here mentioned 
 by name (viii. 2, 3). Much of what w^e know 
 of His mother and all we know of Elisabeth we 
 derive from Luke. Anna the Avidow of four- 
 score at the temple, the widow of Nain, the 
 woman bound by Satan's malign influence for 
 eighteen years, Martha's busy and Mary's quiet 
 life, the woman that was a sinner, the widows of 
 Israel in the days of Elisha, tlie importunate 
 widow of the parable — how full this Gospel is of 
 women ! And how full and blessed is the Lord's 
 sympathy and graciousness toward them whom 
 men had despised and degraded ! Well might 
 His mother Mary sing in joyful praise, ^' He hath 
 
Gospel According to Luke 159 
 
 put down the mighty from their scats, and 
 exalted them of low degree" (i. 52), for He is 
 the Redeemer who makes good His kinship with 
 the oppressed and the despised. 
 
 TJie outcast and forsaken are in Luke objects 
 of Christ's special regard. He is seen associat- 
 ing with publicans, sinners, the fallen, the ostra- 
 cized from human society, not participating in 
 their sins and evil ways, but purifying and lift- 
 ing them out of their degradation and defile- 
 ment. To the sinful woman who washed His 
 feet with her tears and wiped them with her 
 hair, He said, " Thy sins are forgiven. Thy 
 faith hath saved thee ; go in peace " (vii. 44-50). 
 The words, " go in peace,'' are strong and beauti- 
 ful — go into peace, they might be rendered. From 
 that moment onward her home was to be peace ; 
 let her enter it and abide there. To Zacchseus and 
 his household He brought salvation (xix. 1-9). 
 The ten lepers (xvii. 12-19), Lazarus the beggar 
 (xvi. 20-22), the good Samaritan (x. 30-37), the 
 penitent dying thief (xxiii. 40-43), are examples 
 of this blessed feature of His ministry. In 
 chapter xv. 2, we read, '^ This man receiveth 
 sinners, and eatetli with them." This is the 
 " gospel according to the Pharisees." They said 
 it in bitterness and scorn. But unwittingly they 
 spoke the very truth. Jesus Christ does actually 
 do as these fault-finders alleged. Singularly 
 
160 Studies in the Four Gosjych 
 
 vivid is the word translated " receiveth.'' Else- 
 where it is thus rendered, " waiting for '^ (ii. 25) ; 
 " looked for " (ii. 38). AVe might almost read it 
 ^' This man looketh out for sinners, and eateth 
 with them.'' He not only receives; He seeks, 
 and He welcomes. 
 
 6. Christ's dependence on God is faithfully 
 recorded in this Gospel. Reference is had to 
 His prayers and supplications. In all the crises 
 of His earthly life, in the exigencies which 
 came upon Him in the prosecution of His 
 redeeming work, He uniformly turned to God 
 for guidance and help. It is from the Third 
 Gospel we learn that He was praying when the 
 Holy Spirit descended upon Him at His baptism 
 (iii. 21). It is from the same source we learn 
 that His choice of the twelve was made after a 
 night spent in prayer (vi. 12-16). Here only 
 are we told that it was at a time when He was 
 engaged in prayer that Peter confessed Him as 
 the Christ of God (ix. lS-20). Here only an^ we 
 told that His transfiguration occurred when He 
 was praying (ix. 28, 29). Here only are we told 
 that when He gave the disciples a pattern of 
 prayer in what is commonly called the Lord's 
 Prayer, He had just before given them a pattern 
 of prayer in His own example (xi. 1). Here 
 only are we told of His prayer for Peter and the 
 others that, in the awful hour of trial when 
 
Gospel According to Luke IGl 
 
 Satan would sift them as wheat, Peter's faith 
 might not fail (xxii. 31, 32); of His repeated 
 prayers, and His praying more earnestly in His 
 agony, and His sweating great drops of blood 
 (xxii. 40-44) ; of His prayers on the cross, 
 *^ Father, forgive them ; for they know not what 
 they do '^ — " Father, into thy hands I commend 
 my spirit (xxiii. 34, 46). 
 
 Nor is it only in these records of His own 
 personal prayers that this Gospel evinces the 
 spirit of prayer by which He was animated and 
 possessed ; it records His instructions on prayer, 
 its duty and character, more fully than any of 
 the other gospels. Witness the parables of the 
 friend at midnight (xi. 5-13), the importunate 
 widow (xviii. 1-8), the Pharisee and publican 
 (xviii. 9-14). The duty of thanksgiving also 
 for blessings received He urges. Witness His 
 striking commendation of the man cured by 
 Him of the leprosy who " turned back, and with 
 a loud voice glorified God," giving Jesus 
 " thanks.'^ " Were there not ten cleansed ? But 
 where are the nine ? There are not found that 
 returned to give glory to God, save this stranger '' 
 (xvii. 12-19). Luke's Gospel might well be 
 called the Gospel of prayer and thanksgiving. 
 As such it is the Gospel of humanity, for it re- 
 veals Him who is our kinsman claiming kindred 
 with us all, who enters into all that attaches to 
 u 
 
162 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 our condition, into our needs and weaknesses, 
 our sorrows and afflictions, our hunger and dan- 
 ger ; for He is the Son of man, the genuine off- 
 spring of our race. 
 
 Here the Lord Jesus is set forth as a worshiper 
 of God. In chapter iv. 16 occurs an expression 
 of profound suggestiveness : *^ And as his custom 
 was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath 
 day.'' '^As His custom was." It was His 
 habitual practice. Children at the age of five 
 years were admitted into the synagogue, and at 
 thirteen attendance there was a part of the legal 
 life of the Jew. Jesus frequented the place of 
 worship, was Himself a worshiper, and took part 
 in the service. If any ever had a right to ab- 
 sent himself, it was He. He could learn nothing 
 from those who expounded the word of God, and 
 they could teach Him nothing. But the Sabbath 
 was God's ordinance, and worship a divine ap- 
 pointment. On both He will put honor. There- 
 fore He kept rank with those who sought the 
 Lord. He would gladly say : *' I was glad when 
 they said unto me, Let us go into the house of 
 the Lord." For He identified Himself with the 
 people of God, a man among men. 
 
 7. Christ's conflicts with adversaries and His 
 victories over them is another feature of Luke. 
 Reference is had more particularly to His vic- 
 tories over Satan, disease, and death. In the 
 
 1 
 
Gospel Accoi'ding to Luke 163 
 
 otlicr gospels He is scon in conflict with tlic foes 
 of His people, but in Luke it is made prominent. 
 Here we learn that His temptation in the wilder- 
 ness lasted during the whole period of His fast 
 (iv. 1, 2). At the close of the forty days He 
 was assaulted by the devil with the three sharp 
 trials which are recorded. But prior to these 
 He passed through such struggles as never fall 
 to the lot of a mere human being. We can form 
 no conception of the nature or the object of that 
 mysterious and fierce encounter. Conjecture is 
 worse than idle. Far out into a region of trial 
 where our experience finds no place, our blessed 
 Master met the strong and subtle adversary of 
 our souls, and gloriously defeated him. 
 
 Let it be noted that in this scene there is a 
 disclosure of Satan's authority which is not men- 
 tioned by Matthew or Mark. The devil said to 
 the Lord : " All this power will I give thee, and 
 the glory of them : for that is delivered unto 
 me ; and to whomsoever I will I give it." It 
 was neither an empty boast nor an entire false- 
 hood. Enormous power is ascribed to Satan in 
 the Scriptures. Thrice the Saviour calls him 
 " The prince of this world " (John xii. 31 ; xiv. 
 30; X. 11). Paul describes him as "the god of 
 this world [or age]," and as " the prince of the 
 power of the air" (2 Cor. iv. 4, Eph. ii. 2). 
 " And the dragon gave him [the beast] his power, 
 
164 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 and his throne, and great authority'^ (Rev. xiii. 
 2). His sway is as real as it is terrible. Un- 
 godly men are righteously sold under' it. This 
 bad preeminence of the adversary was gained 
 over men through the temptation and fall of the 
 first human pair. " The whole world lieth in 
 the evil one^^ is John's most solemn statement 
 (1 John V. 19, R. v.). That was its condition 
 in John's day ; it is its state now ; it lies in the 
 lap of the devil ! But Christ's victory over the 
 foul tempter is the victory of His people like- 
 wise. "And the devil left him for a season" — 
 until an opportunity. Defeated in the conflict, 
 Satan, however, was not wholly overthrown. 
 When the opportunity arises he will return to 
 the assault, but only to suffer a most crushing 
 defeat, even expulsion from the world, and eter- 
 nal torture in the lake of fire (Rev. xx. 10). 
 Accordingly, Jesus said to the seventy: "I be- 
 held Satan as lightning fall from heaven" (Luke 
 X. 18). The w^ords are prophetic. The day 
 swiftly draws near when Christ will bind the 
 strong one, despoil him of his possessions, and 
 fling him bound into the bottomless pit (Rev. xx. 
 1-3). What is all this but our glorious Kinsman- 
 Redeemer executing vengeance on the savage 
 enemy of His people, the devil ? 
 
 In Luke we have the earnest and pledge of 
 our Lord's blessed work in the redemption and 
 
Gofipd AeconUnr/ to Lake 1G5 
 
 final deliverance of His own from every form of 
 Satan's oppression. Thus He releases the woman 
 whom Satan liacl bound for eighteen years (xiii. 
 16). He prays for those whom Satan had asked 
 for that he might sift them as wheat (xxii. 31). 
 He said to His pitiless judges : ^' But this is 
 your hour, and the power of darkness '' (xxii. 53). 
 The pronoun " your " is very emphatic. Through 
 these wretched men Satan was working his will, 
 his ferocious hatred against the Son of God. 
 But Christ's ^'hour" will ere long sound out, 
 and then the devil, and death, and Hades, the 
 horrible triad, will find their doom in the lake of 
 fire, " which is the second death " (Rev. xx. 10, 
 14). Thus Avill He take vengeance on His and 
 our foes ! 
 
 And then Luke furnishes the strongest possible 
 evidence of the ultimate redemption of our bodies. 
 This precious truth rests on the mighty fact of 
 the Lord's resurrection. It is beautiful and very 
 significant that the Third Gospel gives us the most 
 ample proof of the identity of the Saviour's resur- 
 rection body. We are told that He showed them 
 His hands and His feet, he invited them to han- 
 dle Him, and see that it was His very self; He 
 ate before them ; He assured them that, unlike a 
 spirit. He had flesh and bones (xxiv. 39-44). 
 Three of our most trustworthy senses, sight, 
 hearing, and touch, were appealed to by the risen 
 
166 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Saviour that His identity might be fully attested 
 by His disciples. 
 
 Now why does the Spirit of God in this Gospel 
 enter into such detail? summon such wit- 
 nesses? Why does He add certainty to assur- 
 ance ? For two reasons : First, to establish 
 the fact of Christ's resurrection beyond all ques- 
 tion or cavil. Second, to gladden our hearts 
 with the certainty of our own resurrection in 
 immortal glory. Christ's resurrection is the 
 pledge and sample of ours. He has redeemed 
 our whole selves, and by and by our bodies 
 shall be conformed to the likeness of His body 
 of glory (Phil. iii. 20, 21). And so Luke de- 
 scribes Christ's ascension, with outstretched 
 hands in blessing, the token and the promise 
 that He will in due time complete His blessed 
 work in our full redemption. 
 
 8. The miracles of Luke attest the truth we 
 have been contemplating. There are twenty-one 
 recorded by this evangelist, of which six are 
 peculiar to his narrative. They are : The first 
 draught of fishes (v. 4-10) ; the widow of Nain's 
 son raised to life (vii. 11-16) ; the woman infirm 
 for eighteen years (xiii. 10-17) ; a case of dropsy 
 (xiv. 2-5); the ten lepers cured (xvii. 12-19); 
 Malchus' ear restored (xxii. 51). In each of 
 these mighty works there is proof of His com- 
 passion and His power. Even in those miracles 
 
Gospel According to Lake 1(17 
 
 which arc common to the other gospels there are 
 touches that exhibit the Ivord's humanity and 
 tenderness as Kedeemer and Friend. Thus, when 
 He met the funeral procession at the gate of 
 Nain, and saw the helpless desolation of the 
 widowed mother, ^Mie had compassion on her 
 and said unto her, Weep not." It is beautifully 
 added by Luke, ^'And he gave him to his 
 mother" (R. Y.). The great Kinsman restores 
 what was lost, the only heritage of the weeping 
 mother. No wonder the people "glorified God, 
 saying . . . God hath visited his people." So, 
 too, when He had cast out the unclean spirit 
 from the " only child " of his father, we read, He 
 "gave him back to his father" (ix. 42, R. Y.). 
 Restoration again of what was lost. As we saw, 
 this is one part of the functions of the Kinsman- 
 Redeemer, and blessedly does our Goel fulfill it. 
 9. The parables of Luke witness to the same 
 truth. Of these fifteen are found only in this 
 Gospel. One needs only to name them to have it 
 made altogether clear that through them shine 
 the grace and saving power of the Redeemer. 
 They are : The two debtors (vii. 41-43) ; good 
 Samaritan (x. 30-37) ; friend at midnight (xi. 
 5-8) ; rich fool (xii. 16-21) ; barren fig tree (xiii. 
 6-9) ; great supper (xiv. 16-24) ; lost sheep (xv. 
 3-7) ; lost coin (xv. 8-10) ; lost son (xv. 11-32) ; 
 unjust steward (xvi, 1-8) ; rich man and Lazarus 
 
168 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 (xvi. 19-31); unprofitable servants (xvli. 7-9); 
 unjust judge (xviii. 1-8) ; Pharisee and publican 
 (xviii. 9-14); ten pounds (xix. 11-27). 
 
 These fifteen matchless discourses teach many 
 and varied lessons. They are fitted to diiferent 
 classes of men, and to every kind of circumstance 
 and condition of life. But preeminently do they 
 reveal the Lord Jesus as the Friend and Brother 
 of universal man, and that His grace and love 
 lead Him to seek and save the lost. They 
 exhibit Him also as the Arbiter and Judge of 
 men, who will reward every one according as his 
 works shall be. They set Him forth likewise in 
 His gracious character of Redeemer who restores 
 to men the precious things they have disponed 
 away by their sins and follies. Witness the 
 three recorded in the fifteenth chapter. One of 
 the parables, that of the rich man and Lazarus, 
 teaches, and was intended to teach, the righteous 
 adjustments in the other life of the strange in- 
 equalities that are so often found in this. Let 
 us glance at it for a moment. Death, that crowns 
 or crushes all human hopes, removes these two 
 men. Jesus follows them into the other world, 
 describes their state. It is common to call this 
 parable an allegory, a fiction, designed to point a 
 grave moral lesson for the present life. Let 
 those who thus read ponder Avell this dilemma : 
 (1) Either Christ as Son of God knew that 
 
Gospel According to Luke 1G9 
 
 other life perfectly ; but instead of telling ns the 
 exact truth about it choose to weave together for 
 practical ends this striking but purely fictitious 
 story. If He did, then what becomes of His 
 august title, the Truth ? (John xiv. G). (2) Or if 
 He did not know any more of that other life 
 than do we, and yet undertook to relate the ex- 
 periences of these two men after death, then, 
 still, what becomes of His honesty and His 
 Deity ? We receive this strange narrative as liter- 
 ally and historically true, dressed as it is in the 
 speech of our common life and experience, and be- 
 lieve that its solemn lesson is that the Kedeemer, 
 our blessed Kinsman, warns, exhorts, instructs, 
 but yet fixes ultimately the final destiny of men — 
 of those who trust Him, and of those also who 
 refuse Him and clioose the Avorld's wealth and 
 pleasure instead of Him and His glory. 
 
 10. In his record of the closing scenes of the 
 Lord's earthly sojourn Luke still keeps in view 
 his main theme — Jesus is the Kinsman-Redeemer. 
 
 In chapter xxii. 43, 44 we read that in the 
 profoundly mysterious struggle of the garden an 
 angel from heaven strengthened Him, that 
 ^' His sweat w^as as it were great drops of blood 
 falling down to the ground. '* These two verses 
 are wanting in many authorities, Ave are told. 
 Their omission is due, it is believed, to a mis- 
 taken reverence, a timid anxiety to shield the 
 
170 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Saviour from the appearance of weakness and 
 recoil which tend to sink Him to the level of a 
 mere man. Heb. v. 7 confirms the statement, 
 that He ^^ who with strong crying and tears unto 
 him that was able to save him from death Avas 
 heard for his godly fear.'' Luke is the only writer 
 who tells us of the angel and the bloody sweat. 
 And how deeply human it is ! This is not the 
 sacrificial offering, though essential to it. It is 
 rather the presentation of the august Yictini at the 
 altar where life must be surrendered if men are 
 ever to be saved. But how did the angel strengthen 
 Him ? We are not told. But we may reverently 
 conjecture. One thousand years before He had 
 said by the Spirit of prophecy, " Thou will not 
 leave my soul in hell ; neither wilt thou suffer 
 thine Holy One to see corruption " (Psa. xvi. 
 9-11). Perhaps the angel reassured Him that 
 His visit to the unseen world would be brief, that 
 His body would shortly — how shortly ! — leave the 
 tomb, uninjured by its sojourn there ; and hence 
 He could say, and sing, " Therefore is my heart 
 glad, and my glory rejoiceth.'' He is truly man, 
 but the conqueror of the grave. 
 
 The salvation of the dying robber further con- 
 firms the redeeming power of Jesus. Both the 
 crucified men united at first to " revile " Him 
 (Matt, xxvii. 44; Mark xv. 32). The word 
 these gospels use is " reproached.'' In the mad- 
 
Gospel According to Luke 171 
 
 ness of horror and despair both joined the 
 mockers of the patient Suiferer. But the im- 
 penitent one of the two, Luke tells us, "blas- 
 phemed '^ Christ, a much stronger term (Luke 
 xxiii. 39, Greek). He addressed the Saviour in 
 injurious and insulting language. The other 
 quickly changed his mind about the sufferer. 
 He recognized that He was innocent of every 
 charge laid against Him, that He was more than 
 He seemed to be, that He was the Lord indeed. 
 For in such a moment faith may spring into 
 being, and ripen with the swiftness of thought, 
 " Jesus, remember me when thou comest in Thy 
 kingdom.^' .... "Verily I say unto thee. To- 
 day shalt thou be with me in Paradise '^ (R. Y.). 
 It is an instance of the power and grace of the 
 Redeemer to snatch a brand from the burning, 
 a soul from the jaws of hell. 
 
 The Journey to Emmaus (xxiv. 13-35). Cleo- 
 pas and his friend told their unrecognized com- 
 panion that they had hoped that Jesus of Naza- 
 reth had been He wdio should have redeemed 
 Israel. But instead, He was dead, had died 
 three days before, died as one of three convicted 
 felons on a cross, and with Him their hopes had 
 died. The Redeemer crucified ! What a crush- 
 ing blow to all their hopes ! Gently reproving 
 their want of faith in all the prophets had spoken 
 He added, " Behooved it not the Christ to suffer 
 
172 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 these things, and to enter into his glory?" (R. 
 V.) And beginning at Moses and, not at some 
 but, all the prophets, He expounded unto them, 
 not in some but, in all the Scriptures the things 
 concerning Himself. He pointed out from the 
 Old Testament the magnificent truth that instead 
 of redemption having failed through His death, 
 it was fully and eternally secured thereby. We 
 may believe He began with the protevangelium 
 (Gen. iii. 15), and went on through the cove- 
 nants, the promises, the Messianic prophecies, 
 and the inspired histories as to the person, the 
 offices, and the glory of the Redeemer, till the 
 hearts of the two disciples did burn within them 
 as He opened to them the Scriptures. 
 
 Let us now gather up into a few points the 
 main teaching of the Third Gospel, that some 
 definite conception of its supreme aim may be 
 formed. Luke sets forth the following funda- 
 mental truths : 
 
 1. The Real and Supernatural Incorporation 
 of the Son of God with our race. As Son of 
 man the Lord Jesus is " perfect man, of a rea- 
 sonable soul and human flesh subsisting." As 
 Son of man, He possesses a perfect and penetrat- 
 ing community of nature and of feeling wdth the 
 lot of human kind. He displays a genuine man- 
 hood which could deem nothing human strange, 
 and Avhich could, and can still, be touched with 
 
Gospel According to Luke 173 
 
 a feeling of our infirmities, for " lie was tempted 
 in all points like as we are, yet without sin '' 
 (Heb. iv. 15). 
 
 2. Luke exalts Him as the representative, 
 the ideal, the pattern man. It is in the Third 
 Gospel especially that the Lord Jesus Christ is 
 presented to us in the universality of His man- 
 hood. His is the human life that does justice to 
 the most exalted idea of humanity. In Him 
 humanity finds its unity ; in Him, as Irenaus 
 said, ^* humanity finds its recapitulation.'' Noth- 
 ing local, transient, individualizing, national, or 
 sectarian, dwarfs the proportions of His world- 
 embracing character. He rises above the parent- 
 age, the blood, the narrow horizon which bounded, 
 as it seemed. His human life, for he is the Cath- 
 olic man In whose person distinctions of race, 
 intervals of ages, types of civilization, and degrees 
 of mental culture are as nothing. The compre- 
 hensiveness of His manhood is such that no age 
 or nation can claim Him as exclusively their 
 own : He belongs to all ages, is related to all 
 men, whether they shiver amid the snows of the 
 Arctic circle, or pant beneath the burning heat 
 of the equator, for He is the Son of man, the 
 Son of mankind, the genuine offspring of the 
 race. Although He was born in Judsea, yet He 
 is not a Jew ; born in Asia, He is not an Orien- 
 tal ; much less is He a Greek, still less a Roman. 
 
174 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 He is like the first Adam, but He is more than 
 he, for He is also the Son of God. Higher than 
 the highest, His infinite pity flows out to the 
 lowliest, the most abandoned. He is no poet, 
 yet a world of poesy slumbers in His matchless 
 parables ; no philosopher, yet wisdom discloses 
 her divinest oracles by His lips ; no conqueror, 
 yet He wins the most stupendous victories the 
 world has ever seen. It is not too much to 
 say that as the fullness of the Godhead dwelt in 
 Him bodily, so in Him dwelt the fullness of 
 humanity bodily. 
 
 3. Luke presents this divine man to the 
 world as the mighty Redeemer. He possesses 
 all the qualifications for such an office, and He 
 perfectly fulfills its functions. For (1) He is 
 ^' near of kin " to the w^hole race of man. Since 
 He is the son of David and the son of Abraham, 
 He is closely related to the one great branch of 
 the human family, Israel. And since He is the 
 son of Adam, a genuine member of the family 
 of man, He is the kinsman of the other great 
 branch, the gentile. The tuneful words of the 
 angel to the shepherds are the very truth of God : 
 "Fear not r for, behold, I bring you good tidings 
 of great joy, which shall be to all people. Foi" 
 unto you is born this day in the city of David a 
 Saviour, which is Christ the Lord" (ii. 10, 11). 
 (2) He has proved and approved His kinship 
 
Gospel According to Luke 175 
 
 throughout His entire earthly life and ministry. 
 Every record, incident, action, miracle, and par- 
 able of the Lord Jesus in this Gospel illustrates 
 and exalts the universality of His compassions, 
 and " the wideness of His mercy." The Jew of 
 pure extraction and the mongrel Samaritan, the 
 Pharisee and publican, the respectable and the 
 disreputable, the sinner and the self-righteous, 
 are alike welcome to His presence. The door of 
 redemption is opened wide, wide as the race. 
 The Sun of Righteousness pours His healing 
 beams on all ; on the lowliest as on the loftiest, 
 on gentile as on Jew, on the ragged prodigal as 
 on his respectable brother. Luke\s is the Gospel 
 of grace, free and full, and suited to all mankind. 
 (3) He is abundantly able to redeem, for He is 
 the Son of God Himself. The angel announced 
 to His virgin mother that her Son was to be 
 none other than the Son of God (i. 35). He who 
 refuses the redemption now offered commits the 
 gravest and greatest of crimes. 
 
THE 
 
 GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JOHN 
 
 12 
 
THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JOHN 
 
 AVe now enter upon tlie study of one of the 
 most profound and difficult books of Scripture, 
 the Gospel according to John. It is profound 
 because of the nature of its structure and ])lau, 
 and because of its exceptional presentation of the 
 great subject of all Scripture, the Lord Jesus 
 Christ. It is difficult, because of its tenninology, 
 because it is metaphysical and philosophical alike 
 in its portraiture of the Son of God, of man, of 
 faith and unbelief, of the divine life, of the 
 world, and heaven. Not the least difficult fea- 
 ture in it is its remarkable clearness and simpli- 
 city, a simplicity and clearness which lie so ob- 
 viously on the surface of the Gospel as to delude 
 the casual reader Avith the notion that there are 
 no depths in it. He, however, who Avill patiently 
 and jsersistently read into it will discover that 
 this feature is only apparent ; the calmness and 
 clearness arise not from the style so much as 
 from the transparent thoughts of the writer. 
 Beneath the surface, for those who have eyes to 
 see, there are ever glancing out revelations and 
 unfoldings of the person of Christ, of His inner 
 
 179 
 
180 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 and mysterious being, of the life He lived, and 
 of the doctrine He taught, which no other por- 
 tion of the Bible discloses to us. On this ac- 
 count the book has been described thus : " The 
 Fourth Gospel is the heart of Christ '' ; it is the 
 "spiritual Gospel"; and John is called '^the 
 mystic of the four evangelists." 
 
 It may not be inappropriate to direct attention 
 to the apostle's eminent fitness for the great task 
 assigned him. Reference is had exclusively to 
 his natural gifts, and to the opportunities he had 
 of acquaintance with the events he narrates, not 
 at all to his inspiration. 
 
 1. He was admitted to a peculiar intimacy 
 with the Saviour. He was one of the chosen 
 three who constituted the inner circle of the 
 apostolic company. With his brother James and 
 Peter, John was admitted to the death chamber 
 in Jairus' house, from Avhich all others Avere ex- 
 cluded save the father and mother of the child. 
 With the two just, named, he Avitnessed the 
 Lord's transfiguration, and he beheld the aAvful 
 agony of Gethsemane. He followed the Lord to 
 judgment and to death, and from His dying lips 
 received the charge of His mother. He Avas the 
 ^* bosom disciple," and "the disciple whom Jesus 
 loA^ed." Of the three favored ones John's in- 
 timac\ Avith the Lord Avas the closest. The dis- 
 tinguished privileges he enjoyed fitted him in 
 
Gospel According to John 181 
 
 some measure for the august work committed to 
 his hand, — viz., the recording of the ways and 
 words of the Son of God. 
 
 2. His intellectual, or rather his spiritual, 
 qualifications for the task were of the highest 
 order. The ideal commonly formed of John is 
 that he was tender, weak, almost effeminate in 
 his mental and spiritual constitution. Artists, 
 plainly, have had such conception of him. But 
 the impression is not borne out by Scripture. 
 The two instances recorded of him and his 
 brother, of the exhibition of a fiery zeal and un- 
 sanctified ambition, if that passion ever can be 
 sanctified — the one his stern judgment on the in- 
 hospitable Samaritans, wdiom he would have 
 burnt with the fire of heaven ; the other his 
 request for a princely preeminence in the king- 
 dom of Christ — do not present the idea of feeble- 
 ness and puerility in his character. The surname 
 of ^' Boanerges,'' " sons of thunder," bestowed 
 on him and his brother by one w^ho knew men's 
 inmost hearts, cannot be associated with the idea 
 of softness and effeminacy if there be any corre- 
 spondence between their character and that name. 
 John was as masculine in intellect as he was 
 affectionate in heart. 
 
 So little is told us of his life and relationships, 
 of the influences that contributed to make him 
 what he was, that the conception of him must 
 
182 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 needs be very imperfect. Notwithstanding, it may 
 be safely said that John's mental characteristic is 
 his intensity ; intensity of thought, of feeling, 
 and of word. It springs from the constitution 
 of his being. He is named the "apostle of 
 love.'' Love is his chief theme — the profound, 
 unchanging love of God. His own nature, as 
 born of the Spirit of God, is permeated and 
 dominated by love. In John it is by no means a 
 soft and yielding sentiment, but a passion that 
 seizes its object with all its might and holds it 
 fast ; a love that abruptly repels whatever tends 
 to disgrace the beloved one, or to wrest Him 
 from its grasp. It is this passionate and controll- 
 ing love which fills and thrills John's writings, 
 which glows on every page of them. 
 
 His insight into truth, divine, eternal truth, is 
 piercing. He does not reach conclusions by 
 trains of reasoning ; no labored processes are en- 
 countered in him ; he sees} In a preeminent 
 degree he possesses the intuitions of genius. He 
 discerns truth by direct cognition, by an act of 
 immediate knowledge. He does not arrive at his 
 goal by constructive proof ; his penetrative insight 
 does not require this, nor even allow it. His 
 mental vision pierces to the very heart of his 
 subject and floods it with light. Unlike the vast 
 majority of mortals, who must work their way 
 
 ^ Wescott. 
 
Gospel According to John 183 
 
 gradually and often painfully toward their object, 
 John seems to be poised over it, to view it from 
 above, and to see it all, and all at once. In this 
 Gospel, as certainly as in his Epistles and the 
 Apocalypse, Jolin is the seer. By rarest natural 
 gifts, by the abundant grace communicated to 
 him, above all, by the inspiration of the Holy 
 Ghost, John was singularly fitted for the supreme 
 task assigned him. His writings are in some 
 aspects of them the most profound and difficult 
 of all Scripture ; and to understand and interpret 
 them require the like grace and gift of the Spirit. 
 
 I. Some characteristic features of the Fourth 
 Gospel. 
 
 1. It contains no parables. In x. 6 we read, 
 " this {napoifiia) parable spake Jesus unto 
 them''; but it is not the "parable" {jzapapoXri) 
 so often found in the other gospels. That term 
 John never uses. The word here has a wider 
 significance, and includes every kind of figurative 
 and proverbial teaching. It is equivalent to our 
 allegory. The "good shepherd '' and the " true 
 vine'' are allegories. (See also John xvi. 25, 
 29.) The absence of the parable in John is in 
 harmony with the design of the writer. The 
 book is the revelation of the person of Christ. 
 In it the Spirit challenges for Him as the eternal 
 Son of God the faith and adoration of all. Ac- 
 
184 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 cordlngly, Jesus does not here open His mouth 
 in parables, but rather utters what has been kept 
 secret from the foundation of the world. The 
 Fourth Gospel may not inappropriately be called 
 an apocalypse : for it unveils the glories of the 
 Logos, the eternal Word. 
 
 2. Reflective commentary is intermingled with 
 the narrative in John. The synoptics are largely 
 historical. While John is likewise historical, he, 
 unlike the others, interweaves much of personal 
 reflection into the account. He often pauses to 
 .think over what he has written, to explain some 
 reference, or to press home some vital truth. 
 . 3. The Fourth Gospel combines the characteris- 
 tic features of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. In it 
 ,the distinctive glories of the others are seen to 
 'minQ:le and unite in the most instructive manner. 
 In John the Messianic character is unequivocally 
 ascribed to the Saviour. Here Nathanael says to 
 Jesus, " Rabbi, thou art the Son of God ; thou 
 art the King of Israel" (i. 49). It was to the 
 Avoman at the well of Sychar that He declared 
 Himself to be the long-expected Messiah, ^' I 
 ,that speak to thee am he'^ (iv. 26). Wliat He 
 ^vithheld from the sensuous Galil^eans and the 
 carping scribes He plainly tells this lost Samari- 
 .tan. It is the joyful announcement of Philip to 
 the guileless Nathanael, "We have found him, of 
 whom Moses in the law^, and the prophets, did 
 
Gospel According to John 185 
 
 write'' (i. 45). To Pilate, Jesus testified that 
 He was a king ; that His kingdom neither origi- 
 nated out of this workl, nor drew its power from 
 thence (xviii. 36, 37). This is a part of the 
 ^' good confession witnessed before Pontius 
 Pilate" to which Paul refers (1 Tim. vi. 13). 
 
 Here likewise Christ is represented as the sent 
 of God, the minister of Jehovah and of needy 
 man, as chapter vi. and like portions attest. In- 
 deed, in no other gospel is the divine mission and 
 commission of the Lord Jesus so much insisted 
 on. He points to His heavenly credentials when 
 any question as to His authority is started. Ever- 
 more does He refer to His appointment by the 
 Father, when He would justify His ways before 
 men or silence their senseless criticisms. In the 
 brief compass of a few verses six timeS does He 
 use the word " sent," or a like term, to substan- 
 tiate the validity of His work and of His author- 
 ity (v. 23, 24, 30, 36, 37, 38). ^ All through 
 this Gospel He is found turning back to His 
 commission from the Father. For all He does 
 and says He has a divine warrant. He is the 
 servant of God. 
 
 In none of the other gospels is Christ's human- 
 ity more distinctly recognized. Here we fre- 
 quently find His self-chosen title, "Son of man"; 
 His tender solicitude for His mother (xix. 26, 
 27) ; His soul agitation (xii. 27) ; His flesh and 
 
186 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 blood (vi. 54-56); His incaruation (i. 14); His 
 weariness (iv. 6); His hunger and thirst (iv. 7, 
 31 ; xix. 28). All the faculties, functions, and 
 sinless infirmities of our nature are attributed to 
 Him here as in the other narratives. The human 
 limitations which are seen attaching to the Son 
 of man in Mark and Luke are equally conspicu- 
 ous in John. 
 
 And yet the view presented to us of the Lord 
 Jesus Christ in the Fourth Gospel differs largely 
 from the syjioptic portrait of Him. It is the 
 same Lord we are reading of in all four. But 
 His moral and essential glory shines in John 
 with a radiance all its own. John reveals Him 
 preeminently as the Son of God. 
 
 The Fourth Gospel presupposes the other three. 
 John seems to assume that the contents of Mat- 
 thew, Mark, and Luke are known to his readers. 
 The historian Eusebius says it was current 
 among the eHrly Christians that the evangelist 
 was acquainted with them. If so, we may be- 
 lieve that he wrote under the guidance of the 
 Spirit in such fashion as to complete the picture 
 of the Lord's ministry. But it would be wide 
 of the mark to conceive of this Gospel as a sup- 
 plement of the synoptists. Its structure is so 
 perfect, and its plan and aim are so independent, 
 as to preclude that notion. An appendix, the 
 Fourth Gospel certainly is not. 
 
Gospel According to John 187 
 
 Nor is it polemical. Assuming that it was 
 written near the close of the first century (a. d. 
 80-90), we can readily perceive with what force 
 its revelations as to the person of Christ would 
 contradict certain false views then industriously 
 circulated. Error early began to penetrate the 
 churches, as we learn from some of PauFs epis- 
 tles. Even gnosticism, that baneful scourge of 
 the primitive times, was not unknown to that 
 apostle, at least in its incipient stages, as the 
 Epistle to the Colossians clearly attests. But 
 when John wrote, this heresy was beginning to 
 assume vast proportions. Cerinthus, one of its 
 chief propagators, repaired to Ephesus while 
 John was living there (so Irenseus informs us), 
 and no doubt disseminated his false teaching. 
 Now while the whole doctrine of John runs 
 counter to the pernicious heresies then invading 
 many of the Christian communities, nevertheless 
 His purpose is neither controversial nor supple- 
 mental. The Fourth Gospel is an inspired pres- 
 entation of the person and the work of the Son 
 of God, that believing on Him we may be saved 
 (xx. 31). In two other verses the heart of this 
 Gospel is laid bare, — viz., in i : 14, the Incarna- 
 tion, and in iii : 16, the love of God for man. 
 
 II. Analysis of the Gospel. 
 
 The book may be divided into three sections : 
 
188 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Section First : The Prologue : the Essential 
 Glory of the Son of God, chapter i. 1-18 — the 
 link with the eternity past. 
 
 1. The Word in His absolute, eternal Being, 
 verses 1, 2. 
 
 2. The AYord in His relation with Creation, 
 verses 3-5. 
 
 3. The reception of the Word by men, verses 
 6-13. 
 
 4. Tlie Incarnation of the Word, and His 
 Revelation of the Father, verses 14-18. 
 
 Section Second : Historical Manifestation of the 
 Word, chapters i. 19-xix. — the link with time. 
 
 A. Revelation of the Son of God to man, 
 chapters i. 19-xii. 
 
 1. Testimony of John to Jewish Deputation, 
 chapter i. 19-34. 
 
 2. Testimony of First Disciples, i. 35-51. 
 
 3. Testimony of Jesus, chapters ii.-iv. 
 
 (a) The first Sign : Galilee, chapter ii. 1- 
 
 11— the Lord. 
 
 (b) First Cleansing of the Temple : Jeru- 
 
 salem, ii. 12-25 — the Judge. 
 
 (c) Discourse on the New Birth, chapter iii. 
 
 1-22— the Prophet. 
 
 (d) Testimony of John to his disciples, iii. 
 
 23-36. . 
 
Gospel According to John 189 
 
 (e) Testimony of Jcsiis to the Samaritans, 
 chapter iv. 
 4. The Son of God as the Light, Life, and 
 Truth, chapter v.-xii. 
 
 (1) He is the Source of Life, chapter v. 
 
 (a) Sign at Pool of Bethesda, v. 1-15. 
 
 (b) Discourse on the Meaning of the Sign, 
 V. 16-47. 
 
 (c) Four Witnesses here introduced — viz., 
 
 John, verse 33; Works, verse 36; 
 The Father, verse 37; the Scrip- 
 tures, verse 39. 
 
 (2) He is the Support of Life, cliapters vi., 
 vii. 
 
 (a) Sign of the Five Thousand fed, chapter 
 
 vi. 1-23. 
 
 (b) Discourse on the Bread of Life, vi. 24- 
 
 59. 
 
 (c) Issue of the Discourse, vi. 60-71. 
 
 (d) Various opinions of Him, chapter vii. 1- 
 
 36. 
 
 (e) The Water of Life, vii. 37-39. 
 
 (f ) Issue of the Discourse, vii. 40-53. 
 
 (3) He is the Jndge, the Truth and the Light, 
 chapters viii., ix. 
 
 (a) The Judge, chapter viii. 1-11. 
 
 (b) The Light of the World, viii. 12-30. 
 
 (c) The Truth, viii. 31-58. 
 
 (d) Issue of the Discourse, viii. 59. 
 
190 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 (e) Sign in proof that He is the Light and 
 
 Truth, chapter ix. 1-33. 
 
 (f) The Issue of the Sign and its Testi- 
 
 mony, ix. 34-41. 
 
 (4) He is the 'Shepherd of the Flock of God, 
 
 chapter x. 
 
 (a) The True Shepherd, x. 1-13. 
 
 (b) The Good Shepherd, x. 14-18. 
 
 (c) Issue of the Discourse, x. 19-24. 
 
 (d) The Great Shepherd, x. 25-38. 
 
 (e) Issue of the Discourse, x. 39-42. 
 
 (5) He is the Resurrection and the Life, chap- 
 ter xi. 
 
 (a) Sign of Lazarus' Raising from the Dead, 
 
 chapter xi. 1-44. 
 
 (b) Issue of the Sign, xi. 45-57. 
 
 (6) His Public Testimony Closed, chapter xii. 
 
 (a) His Anointing, xii. 1-8. 
 
 (b) Judgment of Men about Him, xii. 9-19. 
 
 (c) Judgment of Jesus, xii. 20-36. 
 
 (d) Judgment of the Evangelist, xii. 37-43. 
 
 (e) Judgment of the Word of God, xii. 44-50. 
 
 B. Revelation of the Son of God to Be- 
 lievers, chapters xiii.-xvii. 
 
 1 . The Son of God is Believers' Lord, chap- 
 ter xiii. 
 
 (1) He is their Example in self-sacrificing 
 Service, xiii. 1-17. 
 
Gospel According to John 191 
 
 (2) He excludes the Faithless Disciple, xiii. 
 18-35. 
 
 (3) He forewarns the Imperiled Disciple, 
 xiii. 36-38. 
 
 2. The Son of God is Believers' Surety-Re- 
 deemer, chapter xiv. 
 
 (1) He is the AVay to God and Glory, xiv. 
 1-7. 
 
 (2) He is their Mediator with the Father, 
 xiv. 8-15. 
 
 (a) Reveals the Father, verses 8-11. 
 
 (b) Promises them greater Works, verse 12. 
 
 (c) Bids them use His name in Prayer, 
 
 verses 13-15. 
 
 (3) He gives them the greatest Gift, xiv. 1 6-31. 
 
 (a) Another Comforter, One like Himself, 
 
 One instead of Himself, to be in 
 them, to abide with them, verses 16- 
 25. 
 
 (b) One to teach them, confirm them, verses 
 
 26-31. 
 
 3. The Son of God is Believers' Life, chap- 
 ters XV., xvi. 
 
 (1) He is the Source and Supply of their Life, 
 chapter xv. 1-10. 
 
 (2) He is the Source and Support of their Joy 
 and Love, xv. 11-17. 
 
 (3) He is their Support in their Conflict with 
 the AVorld, xv. 18-xvi. 24. 
 
192 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 (4) He will be their Supreme Bliss at His 
 Coming, xvi. 25-33. 
 
 4. The Son of God is Believers' Intercessor, 
 chapter xvii. 
 
 (1) He prays for Himself, xvii. 1-5. 
 
 (2) He prays for His disciples, verses 6-19. 
 
 (3) He prays for Church Universal, vs. 20-26. 
 
 C. The Revelation of the Son of God in His 
 Death as Sin Bearer, chapters xviii., xix. 
 
 1. The Son of God before Human Tribunals, 
 chapters xviii.— xix. 16. 
 
 (1) His Majestic Bearing in the Garden, xviii. 
 1-11. 
 
 (2) His Calm Dignity before the Sanhedrin, 
 xviii. 12-27, 
 
 (3) His Divine Demeanor before the Roman 
 Bar, xviii. 28-xix. 16. 
 
 2. The Crucifixion, chapter xix. 17-37. 
 His Words on the Cross. 
 
 Filial Love : " Behold thy son : Behold 
 
 thy mother." 
 Scripture Fulfilled : " I thirst." 
 Shout of the Victor : '' It is finished." 
 His Death Voluntary : "He delivered up 
 
 His spirit." 
 
 3. The Burial, chapter xix. 38-42. 
 
 Section Third : Manifestation of the Son of 
 
Gospel According to Jolui 193 
 
 God in Resurrection, Power, and Glory, chapters 
 XX., xxi. 
 
 1. The Son of God as Conqueror of Death, 
 chapter xx. 
 
 (1) The Empty Tomb, xx. 1-10. 
 
 (2) His Manifestation to Mary Magdalene, xx. 
 11-18. 
 
 (3) His Manifestation to the Disciples (Thomas 
 absent), xx. 19-25. 
 
 (4) His Manifestation to the Disciples (Thomas 
 present), xx. 26-31. 
 
 2. The Son of God as the Lord of Glory, 
 cha])ter xxi. This chapter is the epilogue of 
 the Gospel, and answers to the prologue of chap- 
 ter i. 1-18. It is the link with eternity future. 
 
 (1) The Miraculous Draught of Fishes (xxi. 
 1-14). It is a reproduction of the like miracle 
 when some of these seven men were first called 
 (Luke V. 5-11). They had virtually renounced 
 their mission and gone back to their old occupa- 
 tion. The risen Lord now reinstates them, re- 
 commissions Peter, and predicts his martyrdom 
 (xxi. 15-19). 
 
 (2) The significant hypothetical saying (xxi. 
 
 20-25). 
 
 Such is an imperfect analysis of this marvelous 
 Scripture. Some very uotable things are apparent 
 in it, only two of which may be here set down. 
 
 1. The Fourth Gospel is perfect in structure 
 
194 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 and plan. Every incident recorded, every sign 
 wrought, every discourse reported, and every re- 
 flection of the writer bear directly on the august 
 theme — Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. 
 There is not a superfluous or irrelevant sentence 
 in the book. AVhere in all the range of human 
 literature can there be picked out another writing 
 of the same length that for unity, lucidity, depth, 
 height, and power, can for a moment be compared 
 with this Gospel ? 
 
 2. The prologue (i. 1-18) is the key and core 
 of the Gospel of John. Not only does the in- 
 spired writer start with this stupendous revela- 
 tion of the Son of God, but he never loses sight 
 of it to the very end. He develops it, unfolds it, 
 and applies it throughout the entire book. This 
 appears in the names he gives to Christ, in the 
 world's hostility to Him, in the development of 
 belief and disbelief, in the revelation of Jesus to 
 men and to His disciples, and in the majestic 
 scenes succeeding the resurrection. Wonderful 
 are Matthew, Mark, and Luke, but John exceeds. 
 
 III. The Design of John. On oj>ening the 
 Fourth Gospel we instinctiv^ely feel that we are on 
 very high ground indeed. Here the Lord Jesus 
 is revealed as the eternal Word, the only begotten 
 of the Father, full of grace and truth. We are 
 confronted with the transcendent fact that Jesus 
 
Gospel According io John 195 
 
 IS none other than the Jehovah of the Old Testa- 
 ment, God manifest in the flesh. John, accord- 
 ingly, is the Gospel of the divine Sonship of the 
 Saviour. Luke and John may be regarded as 
 somewhat contrast! ve, although they treat of the 
 one glorious person. Certainly the Redeemer of 
 Luke is the eternal Word of John. The charac- 
 teristic difference is this : Luke gives prominence 
 to the humanity of Jesus, to His compassions, 
 His pity, His tenderness, and sympathies ; John, 
 to His personal dignity and glory as the Son of 
 God. In Luke, He is seen going down to man's 
 circumstances and needs ; in John, as draicing 
 men ujj to Himself (xii. 32). In Luke, He is 
 the Friend and Brother of men, the one who can 
 be touched with a feeling of our infirmities, the 
 one who comes to men where they are, and as 
 they are offers to redeem them. In Matthew, He 
 is Messiah the King ; and in Mark, the Burden- 
 bearer. In John, He is all this, and besides in 
 every act He performs, in every word He speaks, 
 in every title He takes, and in every blessing Pie 
 brings, He is the Son of God, Himself God. 
 
 In chapter xx. 30, 31, the evangelist definitely 
 states the design on account of which the Gospel 
 has been written : " And many other signs truly 
 did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which 
 are not written in this book : but these are 
 written that ye might believe that Jesus is the 
 
196 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Christ, the Son of God ; and that, believing, ye 
 might have life through his name/' John's 
 narrative contains only part of Jesus' ^' signs." 
 His record is representative, not exhaustive. He 
 writes a gospel, not a life. But these marvelous 
 specimens he has given us have but one aim, and 
 one alone : that we may believe that Jesus is the 
 Christ, the Son of God, and this to the end we 
 may have eternal life. This is his subject and 
 his purpose. In the briefest possible compass, 
 let us endeavor to possess ourselves of the proofs 
 which establish this majestic proposition " These 
 are written that ye might believe that 
 Jesus is the Christ, the son of God : and 
 
 THAT, believing, YE MIGHT HAVE LIFE 
 THROUGH HIS NAME." 
 
 1. Four Witnesses, summoned by Cin'ist Him- 
 self, attest it (chapter v. 31-40). The Jews ac- 
 cused Him of making Himself God's equal in 
 that He called God ^Hiis own Father" (v. 18, 
 K. v.). In reply Jesus declares that He is the 
 judge of the world (v. 22, 23) ; the quickener of 
 t\iQ spiritually dead (v. 25) and of the physically 
 dead (v. 28, 29). Then He introduces His wit- 
 nesses : First, John the Baptist (v. 33), " Ye sent 
 unto John, and he bare witness unto the truth." 
 The reference is to the memorable scene at the 
 Jordan, the baptism, and the visible descent of 
 the Spirit upon the Son of man, concerning which 
 
Gospel According to John 197 
 
 John said : " And I saw, and bare record that 
 this is the Son of God'' (i. 34). Second, the 
 greater witness — viz., His works (v. 36, R.V.). 
 ^' Tlie very works that I do bear witness of me, 
 that the Father hath sent me.'' They are the 
 deeds wliich express the nature and compass of 
 His will, the mighty powers He possessed, and 
 they indicate the superhuman qualities of His 
 person. Third, " the Father himself, which hath 
 sent me, hath borne witness of me '' (v. 37). In 
 a manner, to an extent, and in conscious reality, 
 such as no mere creature can understand or ex- 
 perience, the Father's testimony was given His 
 well-beloved Son. Fourth, the Scriptures : 
 ^' Search the scriptures ; for in them ye think ye 
 have eternal life : and they are they which testify 
 of me " (v. 39). The reference is to the Old 
 Testament Scriptures, and our Lord declares that 
 in their totality they attest His claims and His 
 mission. Accordingly, He must be the Messiah, 
 the Son of God, for His advent is the burden of 
 their testimony. 
 
 2. The names and titles given our Lord in 
 John are descriptive of His person as the Son of 
 God, and are proofs of His Messianic mission. 
 
 (1) The Word (i. 1) : " In the beginning was the 
 Word, and the Word Avas with God, and the 
 Word was God." This great name appears to be 
 derived from the Old Testament phrase, "The 
 
198 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Word of the Lord'' (Ps. xxxiii. 6; cvii. 20; 
 cxlvii. 15, 18; 1 Sam. iii. 1-4) .^ That it desig- 
 nates the Lord Jesus Christ there can be no doubt. 
 Three thino^s are here asserted of Him : His eter- 
 nity ; His eternal separate existence ; His deity. 
 There is impKed in it likewise the fact that He is 
 the supreme revelator of God. He reveals God to 
 men, and men to themselves. Thus we are told, 
 " No man hath seen God at any time ; the only 
 begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the 
 Father, he hath declared him" (i. 18). The 
 word that John wrote for our English " declare '' 
 {kqrjyrjaaro) (i. 18) is the source of the word 
 "exegesis," and we might venture to read, "He 
 hath interpreted Him," has made Him known. 
 
 ^ In these and similar passages divine attributes are predi- 
 cated of the Word of the Lord, e. g., authority (Gen. xv. 4) ; 
 creative energy, (Ps. xxxiii. 6) ; healing, (Ps. cvii. 20) ; agent of 
 God^swUl, (Isa. Iv. 10, 11). Jewisli teachers early recognized 
 the power which Scripture thus ascribes to God's Word, and 
 accordingly they named it Memra-Jehovah, the Word of Jeho- 
 vah. Thus, Gen. iii. 8, 9, was paraphrased by them, "they 
 heard the voice of the Word of the Lord God." Such views 
 of the Old Testament were no doubt common in John's time, 
 and he was familiar with them. But he attaches a deeper 
 and a fuller meaning to the great term Logos. That he did not 
 employ it in the sense of the Alexandrian school appears 
 more than probable. That he did not derive it from Plato 
 is certain. The Spirit of God does not resort to heathen 
 sources for His material. In the Old Testament " word of 
 the Lord " Christ was foreshadowed. He is revealed in John's 
 doctrine of the Logos (see Cremer, sub voce). 
 
Gospel According to John 199 
 
 Christ is the supreme expositor of the invisible 
 God. 
 
 (2) The Life (i. 4): "In him was life" (op. 
 xiv. 6). He is the author and maintainer of all 
 life, particularly of spiritual and eternal life. 
 He imparts it equally with the Father (v. 21): 
 '^ Even so the Son quickeneth whom he will." 
 John ascribes to Him the work of creation (i. 3), 
 as does Paul also (Col. i. 16, 17). 
 
 (3) The Light (i. 9) : " There was the true light, 
 even the light which lighteth every man, coming 
 into the world " (R. V.). He is the great illu- 
 minator of men. He always has been and 
 always will be. Light is sometimes used in 
 Scripture for salvation, sometimes for holiness, 
 often for divine and saving knowledge. Of all 
 this and much more Christ is the fountain. 
 
 (4) Only Begotten (i. 14, 18, etc.) : " The only 
 begotten Son." Wherever this term occurs, and 
 it is found nine times in the New Testament, it 
 invariably expresses the idea of a single person ; 
 but there is but one in the class designated by 
 " only begotten," whether it be a human family, 
 or the ineffable relationship of the Son with the 
 Father. " Only begotten " stands absolutely 
 alone in His place. There is no other person in 
 all the universe who sustains the like relation 
 with God as the only begotten Son. 
 
 (5) The Lamb of God (i. 29): "Behold the 
 
200 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the 
 world.^' He is the propitiation God has pro- 
 vided. As such He meets and settles forever the 
 whole question of sin as between God the right- 
 eous Judge and the believing sinner. As such He 
 fulfills the gracious prediction of Isa. liii. 7, 12, 
 the typical promise in the paschal lamb, and the 
 prophecy of the smitten one in Zech. xii. 7. 
 
 (6) Son of God (i. 34, 49 ; iii. 18 ; ix. 35, etc.). 
 That His great claim to be one with the Father 
 is bound up with this title is evident from the 
 impression its use made on the Jews, and from 
 their charge of blasphemy preferred against Him 
 on account of it (v. 18 ; x. 30, 33). As Son, He 
 declares Himself to be the object of the Father's 
 highest love (iii. 35 ; v. 20). As Son, He dis- 
 charges the same august offices as the Father 
 (v. 21-29). As Son, He reciprocates the Father's 
 knowledge of Himself by an equivalent knowl- 
 edge of the Father (x. 14, 15). As Son, He rec- 
 otjnizes no essential distinction between Himself 
 and the Father, except that which is inseparable 
 from the relationship of the one to the other in 
 the economy of redemption (x. 30 ; xiv. 28). As 
 Son, He needs no information about men, for He 
 knows all men, and what is in man (ii. 24, 25). 
 He is most thoroughly acquainted with man, with 
 his secret thoughts, motives, purposes, and his- 
 tory, as His words to Nicodemus^ to the woman 
 
Gospel According to John 201 
 
 at the well, to the cripple at the pool, prove. 
 Perfect knowledge of them and matchless wisdom 
 in dealing with them belong to Him. 
 
 (7) The True Bread (vi. 32). True, not in the 
 sense that there is no other, or that all other 
 bread is false ; but true because the only real 
 and genuine. He is the bread of which all other 
 bread is but a dim shadow, an imperfect type. 
 And this He is because He is the Bread of God, 
 the Bread of Life, the Living Brcad, the Bread 
 of Heaven. 
 
 (8) The Shepherd (x.). Therefore He is the 
 Redeemer, provider, protector, and guide of His 
 flock. This magnificent presentation of Christ 
 as the Shepherd of the flock of God answers to 
 the Twenty-third Psalm, the finest pastoral ever 
 penned. There the believer confidingly says, 
 "The Lord is my shepherd.'^ Here Christ re- 
 plies, " I am the good shepherd.'* As such He 
 knows all His people, their names, dwelling 
 places, their private history, experience, trials. 
 As such He tenderly cares for them, provides for 
 them, protects, and leads them, " going before.'' 
 If there be difficulties and dangers in the way. 
 He first encounters them. He even lays down 
 His life for them, and shields them in His own 
 and His Father's hand. Assuredly, each one of 
 them may with overflowing gladness say, "I 
 shall not want" c . . "Surely goodness aad 
 
202 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and 
 I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." 
 
 (9) The Resurrection (xi. 25) : "I am the resur- 
 rection and the life : he that believeth on me, 
 though he die, yet shall he live : and whosoever 
 liveth and believeth on me shall never die'' 
 (R. v.). Therefore He is the conqueror of 
 death, the deliverer from the grave, the giver of 
 a life which death can in nowise touch. At His 
 girdle swing " the keys of death and of Hades '' 
 (Rev. i. 18, R. Y.). Note the double title 
 Christ employs, ^' resurrection '' and " life.'' To 
 these correspond the precious promise that every 
 sleeping child of God shall be raised up, and 
 every living saint shall by no means die forever. 
 I believe the reference is to His second coming 
 in both cases ; dead saints shall then be raised, 
 and living believers shall never die at all (1 
 Thess. iv. 16, 17). Christ is both the first fruits 
 of the sleeping saints, and the agent who will 
 transform living believers (1 Cor. xv. 51). 
 
 (10) The True Vine (xv. 1). He is the source 
 and supply of the life of His people who are 
 united to Him; and the life they receive is 
 divine, eternal, for it is His own. 
 
 These are some of the distinctive names and 
 titles given our Lord in this Gospel. To draw 
 out at length their bearing on John's main 
 theme is unnecessary ; the reader can do this for 
 
Gospel According to John 203 
 
 himself. It is enough to say that they describe 
 a unique person whose rank in the scale of being 
 and whose exalted place in the purposes and 
 counsels of God are not those of a mere creature, 
 nor can be. He is the Son of God. 
 
 3. The miracles of John witness to the same 
 august truth. Of the eight recorded, six are 
 found here alone, and these are introduced with 
 reference to the doctrine, or to the form of doc- 
 trine, which asserts His glory as the fellow and 
 equal of God. They are such as display Him 
 before our eyes as, beyond all controversy, God. 
 The term that John uniformly employs to desig- 
 nate Christ's supernatural works is very definite 
 and expressive — " sign.'' The words for " mira- 
 cles " so often occurring in the other gospels are 
 omitted by John entirely, save one, and it He 
 uses but once — viz., " wonders " (iv. 48). " Signs " 
 is his significant appellation. When Christ's 
 miraculous actions which are so plentifully de- 
 scribed in the synoptists are referred to by John, 
 he calls them " works," as if they w^ere perfectly 
 natural to Him, and what might be expected 
 from the Son of God. But "signs" belong to 
 a distinct class of miracles in John. What does 
 he mean by them? "Sign," according to John, 
 is a supernatural deed of the Lord Jesus, wrought 
 for a very definite purpose, and it is intended to 
 reveal His character. So the apostle himself 
 
204 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 appears to define it the very first time he uses it 
 (ii. 11), "This beginning of his signs did Jesus 
 in Cana of Galilee, and manifested his glory" 
 (R. Y.). Nothing in the least like this is said 
 of the miracles of prophet or apostle, nor indeed 
 could without manifest blasphemy be said of 
 any mere creature (Brown). The '^ sign " mani- 
 fested His glory, revealed, disclosed it, thus ful- 
 filling what is said of Him in i. 14, " We be- 
 held his glory, the glory as of the only begotten 
 of the Father.'^ It is very significantly added 
 (ii. 1 1), " And his disciples believed on him.'^ The 
 " sign " achieved its double purpose — it revealed 
 the Lord of glory, and it led the disciples to be- 
 lieve on Him. 
 
 He is called the Creator in i. 3, and His right 
 to the supreme title is proved by His changing 
 the water into wine (ii. 1-11), a creative act. 
 He is the Life (i. 4), and the title is made good by 
 the healing of the nobleman^s son (iv. 46-54). 
 He claims to quicken the dead (v. 21), and con- 
 firms the claim by curing the man as good as 
 dead for thirty-eight years (v. 2-9), He an- 
 nounces Himself as the Light of the world 
 (viii. 12), and proves it by opening the eyes of 
 one born blind (ix. 1-8). He saith, " I am the 
 resurrection and the life,'' and at His command 
 Lazarus starts forth from the sleep of death, the 
 living witness of His glory and His power (xi, 25j 
 
Gospel According to John 205 
 
 43, 44). When the six disciples, led by Peter, 
 proposed to return to their old occupation of fish- 
 ing, Jesus as the risen Head of His people re- 
 called them to their true work by a second 
 draught of fishes (xxi. 6). Every great name 
 He takes, and every divine claim He makes, 
 He substantiates by His "signs/' 
 
 4. The discourses of Jesus recorded in John 
 testify to the theme of His divine Sonship. 
 More than any of the other three does John 
 reproduce Christ's teachings on this subject. 
 In Matthew the discourses relate mainly to the 
 kingdom of heaven. The addresses in Luke 
 bear the mark of the Spirit's aim in that Gospel. 
 In John these and the like features are found, 
 but they are not made prominent. That which 
 is here preeminent in the Lord's teaching is 
 Himself, His own person and work as the Son 
 of God. The discourses in John are self-revela- 
 tions. They are disclosures of Christ Himself: 
 His mysterious person, His relation with the 
 Father, His relation to the world, to His own 
 people, His thoughts, purposes, character, and 
 mission. 
 
 But a clear distinction is maintained between 
 His addresses to the unbelieving Jews and those to 
 His disciples. In the former, the revelation of 
 Himself is veiled. A strange reserve is practiced. 
 Love will not give out all its message, for it can- 
 
206 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 not. There is no receptivity in the hearers. Jesus 
 will witness to His own infinite dignity, to His 
 oneness with the Father, to His Messiahship. 
 But he does it with solemn warnings inter- 
 mingled, and awful rebukes, and profound grief. 
 With indescribable pathos He says to the hostile 
 Pharisees : " Ye neither know me, nor my Father. 
 I go my way, and ye shall die in your sins. Ye 
 will not come to me, that ye might have life " 
 (viii. 19, 21 ; v. 40.) With the sternness of abso- 
 lute truth and righteousness He must tell them 
 they are the children of the devil (viii. 44) ; are 
 not of His sheep (x. 26) ; that they should soon 
 lose the Light now shining among them (xii. 35, 
 36). He could say with perfect truthfulness 
 when all was over, and their doom sealed, ^' They 
 hated me without a cause " (xv. 25). 
 
 But to His disciples, His own who loved and 
 trusted Him, whom He likewise loved and 
 trusted. He pours out all the affection of His in- 
 finite heart. They are His sheep, His friends. 
 Them He comforts as one whom His mother com- 
 forts (xiv. 1-4) ; with them He shares His own 
 peace (xiv. 27) ; His own joy (xv. 11) ; His own 
 glory (xvii. 22). To them He tells unreservedly 
 all that is for their comfort and guidance, and for 
 His glory. For they are to be with Him where 
 He is and as He is — sharers in His bliss. He tells 
 them, " Henceforth I call you not servants ; for 
 
Gospel AGCordlng to John 207 
 
 the servant knowcth not what liis lord doeth : but 
 I have called you friendti ; for all things that I 
 have heard of my Father I have made known 
 unto you" (xv. 15). It is a condition of servi- 
 tude not to be made acquainted with the mastei'^s 
 plans or purposes. It is a condition of friendship 
 to share the thoughts and counsels of the friend. 
 " The secret of the Lord is with '^ those who are 
 His friends (Ps. xxv. 14) : the margin of the 
 Revised Version reads, " The friendship of the 
 Lord is with them that fear him ; and his cove- 
 nant to make them know it." For them He 
 offers the marvelons intercessory prayer of chap- 
 ter xvii. — the high-priestly prayer — ^^The-one- 
 with-Christ-in-glory-prayer," as one has named it. 
 Them He addresses as ^' My brethren," a dearer 
 name by far than " servant," or ^^ disciple," or 
 "friend." Some features of these august dis- 
 courses may be pointed out. 
 
 (1) Their volume. Fifteen chapters, in whole 
 or in part, are taken up with them, to wit, chap- 
 ters iii.-xvii, and chapter xxi. Some of these 
 chapters contain only the words of the Lord 
 Jesus, man's words finding but a very small place 
 in them — e.g., xiv.-xvii. Even in the chapters 
 which are more strictly historical His words find 
 no unimportant place (xviii.-xx.). 
 
 (2) The subjects treated are numerous and 
 fundamental — e.g., the New Birth, the Living 
 
208 Studks in the Four Gospels 
 
 Water, the Deliverer and Judge, the Bread of 
 Life, the Spirit and His office, the Shepherd, the 
 Resurrection, and the Judge. The discourses 
 on these great topics occupy chapters iii.-xii. and 
 they were addressed in the main to the multi- 
 tudes. But from this point on to the close — viz., 
 chapters xiii.-xxi. — they pertain to the disciples 
 alone. They are the Lord's valedictory to His 
 own whom having loved during His sojourn with 
 them He loved to the end (xiii.-xvii.). Three 
 things are made very prominent in these fare- 
 well discourses : a, A lesson in humility and 
 mutual service (xiii.) ; b. Cotftfort administered, 
 peace assured, hope confirmed, love displayed, 
 guidance and guardianship pledged ; for the Holy 
 Spirit is to come to them with all the fullness and 
 blessedness of His abiding presence (xiv.-xvi.) ; 
 c. The Intercessory Prayer (xvii.), wherein He 
 first makes request in behalf of the Father's 
 glory ; second, He claims His own glory ; third, 
 He asks for the preservation and glorification of 
 all His people. 
 
 (3) The personal element. The self-conscious- 
 ness of the Lord Jesus is a pecuharity of John 
 that constantly arrests the attention of the reader. 
 No matter how profound His humiliation — and 
 John never forgets it — or how marked the human 
 limitations He imposed on Himself when He as- 
 sumed our nature, evermore He is here represented 
 
Gospel According to John 209 
 
 as being perfectly cognizant of His own preex- 
 istence, His personal dignity, and the glory which 
 essentially belonged to Him. He calls Himself 
 *^the Son of God" (v. 25; x. 36), declares that 
 He is the sole way of access to the Father (xiv. 
 6), that to know Him is to know the Father also, 
 to have seen Him is likewise to have seen the 
 Father (xiv. 7-9), and that if " anything '' be 
 asked in His name He will do it (xiv. 13, 14). 
 By these and such like tremendous assumptions 
 of divine dignity and power He reveals Him- 
 self as perfectly conscious of whence He is, the 
 errand upon which He is come, and the inef- 
 fable union and communion with the Father im- 
 plied and involved in these high claims. The 
 " Son of God " is the eternal companion of and 
 cooperator with the Father. Of all who ever 
 walked on this earth He alone said, and had the 
 supreme right to say, "I came out from the 
 Father, and am come into the world : again, I 
 leave the world, and go unto the Father '^ (xvi. 
 28). He is the center of all God^s counsels, the 
 sum and body of all the truth He reveals. 
 
 Observe the constant and significant use of the 
 phrase ^^ I am.^' '' I am the way, the truth, and 
 the life f " I am the door f " I am the vine f 
 '' I am the resurrection.'' Scores of times He 
 thus speaks of Himself. In viii. 58 He speaks 
 an amazing word, ''Yerily, verily, I say unto 
 It 
 
210 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 you, Before Abraham was, I am/' The antith- 
 esis between the terms "was'' and "am" is as 
 strong as it can well be ; " before Abraham was 
 born (Diodati's Italian ; R. Y. margin), I am/' 
 not " was." There was a time when Abraham 
 was not ; there never was a time when the Son 
 of God Avas not. But His words involve much 
 more than priority of existence. If Jesus meant 
 no more than that He existed before Abraham, 
 He would have said, " Before Abraham was, I 
 was." But this he does not say. His " I am " 
 goes infinitely deeper ; it connects Him, nay, iden- 
 tifies Him, with the august title of Jehovah Him- 
 self, " I am that I am " (Ex. iii. 14). " His 
 human consciousness gave utterance to the awful 
 depths of the eternal Ego." In xvii. 24,' He 
 prays, " Father, I will that they also, whom thou 
 hast given me, be with me where I am ; that tliey 
 may behold ray glory, which thou hast given me " 
 — language which no mere creature should dare 
 address to Almighty God. 
 
 (4) The Infinitude of His Knowledge. This 
 is most wonderful both in its comprehensiveness 
 and minuteness. He knows the Father, and His 
 will ; the mission upon which He is come, and 
 its issue. He knows the elect, the sheep given 
 Him of the Father; and the certainty that not 
 one of them shall ever perish. He knows the 
 thoughts of the disciples, the plans of the traitor. 
 
Gospel According to John 211 
 
 the denial of Peter, the Scriptures that speak of 
 Himself, and the whole work given Him to do. 
 Heav^en, earth, the invisible world, time, eternity, 
 men, angels — He knows them all. He is in 
 heaven while on the earth (iii. 13).^ 
 
 5. The Fourth Gospel represents Christ as the 
 accomplishment of Old Testament types. In the 
 Lord Jesus, John finds the embodiment of much 
 that in the olden time was both dim and distant. 
 So does Matthew, but with a difference. Mat- 
 thew is chiefly concerned with the events in the 
 Saviour's life which fulfilled Messianic prophe- 
 cies. If we may so say, John goes deeper. He 
 shows that Jesus Himself is the substance and 
 reality of Old Testament shadows and pic- 
 tures. He is the realization of all that nourished 
 the faith and animated the hope of the saints who 
 
 * Against John iii. 13 the margin of the Revised Version 
 has "many ancient authorities omit which is in heaven." 
 "Wescott and ITort omit these words from their Greek Text, 
 but print them in the margin. On the otlier hand, Tischen- 
 dorf (8th Ed.), Tregelles, Alford, Weymouth's Eesultant 
 Text, Stuttgart Edition (1898), all xetain them. Whitney: 
 "The evidence in support of their genuineness is 'simply 
 overwhelming" (Rev. Gr. Text, vol. ii. p. 18). Burgon; 
 "The precious clause in question is in 10 versions, 38 
 Fathers, and in every MS., except five of bad character" 
 (R. R., pp. 132, 3). It is easier to account for their omission 
 from some copies than to explain them as a gloss. Their 
 very difficulty argues for their genuineness. No copyist 
 would be likely to invent such a profound phrase. 
 
212 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 patiently waited for the promise. Christ is the 
 tabernacle and the shekinah glory enshrined with- 
 in it ; i. 14, ^' And the AYord was made flesh, and 
 dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, the 
 glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full 
 of grace and truth/^ Picturesque is the term for 
 "dwelt '^ — " tabernacled," literally — and it points 
 to the sacred tent of the wilderness in which 
 God dwelt (2 Sam. vii. 6). In the human form 
 of Jesus there tented, as we might say, the in- 
 finite glory of the Deity. He is the temple (ii. 
 19-21). A sign was sought, and one was given, 
 an enigma : " Destroy this temple, and in three 
 days I will raise it up." A double " sign " — His 
 own body and the temple there before them. 
 Both would be destroyed by the hands of men ; 
 His body, that soon would be raised again ; the 
 temple, to be reproduced in the Church He was 
 founding, a holy temple to be dwelt in by the Spirit 
 of the living God (Eph. ii. 20-22). He is the lad- 
 der of angelic ascent and descent (i. 51, cp. Gen. 
 xxviii. 12). He is all that was signified by the 
 lamb of the first passover, and the lamb brought 
 silently to the slaughter (i. 29, 36, cp. Ex. xii. 13, 
 Isa. lii. 7). He is the reality of all that the 
 brazen serpent in the wilderness effected and 
 predicted, for He is the true remedy for the 
 poison-virus of sin (iii. 14, 15, cp. Num. xxi. 9). 
 He is the true Manna (vi. 32). Abraham saw 
 
Gospel According to John 213 
 
 His day, and was glad (viii. 56). Moses wrote 
 of Him (v. 46). Isaiah saw His glory, and spake 
 of Him (vii. 41). Jesus Christ in His person, 
 mission, and offices is, according to John, the one 
 ])reeminent theme of all Scripture. Toward 
 Him all its lines converge ; in Him all its 
 strange voices harmonize and blend ; in Him its 
 mighty promises and predictions find their ample 
 fulfillment. 
 
 6. Christ's extraordinary claims, so conspicuous 
 in John, attest His divine character and mission. 
 With many of these claims we have already met 
 in the course of this study. But they are so re- 
 markable, and some of them so transcendently 
 great, that they deserve further notice. Jesus de- 
 clares that for a particular end was He sent, and 
 that God the Father sent Him on such errand (iii. 
 16 ; X. 10 ; xvi. 28 ; xviii. 37). He annoiinces that 
 whoever hears His word and believes Him that 
 sent Him hath eternal life, and shall never come 
 into judgment, but is passed out of death into life 
 (v. 24, R. V.) ; that He gives eternal life to as many 
 as the Father has given Him (xvii. 2) ; that He 
 will raise up all that believe in Him at the last 
 day (vi. 39, 40) ; that at His bidding all the dead 
 shall come forth from their graves (v. 29) ; that 
 those to whom He gives eternal life shall never 
 perish, nor shall any one snatch them out of His 
 hand (x. 28, R. Y.). With the calmness that is 
 
214 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 begotten of conscious truth, and power, He de- 
 clares that if He be lifted up He will draw all 
 men to Himself (xii. 32) ; that if His people ask 
 anything in His name He will do it for them 
 (xiv. 14). 
 
 He says that He is in the Father, and the 
 Father is in Him (xiv. 10). All that which is 
 the Father's, is therefore His (xvii. 10). He is 
 from above (viii. 23) — a fact the Baptist recog- 
 nizes, and hence says that He is above all (iii. 31). 
 He, and He alone, has seen the Father (vi. 46). 
 In nature, operation, and majesty, He is one with 
 the Father (xiv. 9 ; v. 17, 19, 21). In the con- 
 sciousness of the perfect rectitude of His ways. He 
 challenges His enemies to convict Him of sin (viii. 
 46, R.V.). In the solemn crisis of His life, when 
 the deep shadow of the cross was falling on Him, 
 He could say, " The Prince of this world cometh, 
 and hath nothing at all in me " (xiv. 30, Greek). 
 This fell spirit came to Adam and Eve, and found 
 weakness. He came to Noah, Abraham, Moses, 
 David, Paul, John, and to all the saints, and found 
 imperfection. He came to Christ, and found 
 infinite strength and invincible fullness in Him. 
 
 To the amazed Jews He said, " No one taketh 
 it [my life] away from me, but I lay it down of 
 myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have 
 power to take it again " (x. 18, R. V.). This is 
 the language of one whose life was absolutely His 
 
Gospel According to John 215 
 
 own. Over it and over His own death Christ had 
 supreme control. Of no mere man can so much 
 be said ; of no creature, either, not even of the 
 highest angel. We die because we must AVitli 
 our birth the struggle between death and life 
 begins, and death is always the victor. Over tlie 
 whole race death reigns, except in the case of the 
 man Christ Jesus. He held His life and His death 
 in His own right. No creature, angel or mortal, 
 could wrest it from Him. Himself laid it down, 
 Himself took it again. His death was voluntary, 
 yet a necessity, if the sheep were ever to be saved. 
 "Without a word or a hint of disapproval He per- 
 mits Thomas to address Him with the awful 
 words, " My Lord, and my God '' (xx. 28), titles 
 that are equivalent to the two great names of the 
 Old Testament, " Lord God " (Jehovah God). 
 
 It is noteworthy likewise that the Lord Jesus 
 is superior to human intercession. He never asks 
 His disciples to pray for Him, though He con- 
 stantly urges the duty and necessity of prayer. 
 Paul writes to his fellow-saints, ^^ Brethren, pray 
 for us ; " " pray for me." But such is never the 
 language of Jesus. In His only prayer re- 
 corded by John (xvii.), He does not put Himself 
 into the same category w^ith the disciples. He 
 maintains the distance of His own proper relations 
 with the Father and His personal dignity between 
 Himself and them. He does not include them 
 
216 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 with Himself in the personal pronouns in it. He 
 always says " I/' and " me/' and ^^these " and 
 " them " that " thou hast given me ; " never "we " 
 and " us," as we speak, and should speak, in our 
 petitions. Even in intercession He is solitary, 
 unique — the heavenly stranger in the world. 
 
 In view of these majestic claims, we can with 
 utmost confidence write the profound words of 
 Paul, " For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the 
 Godhead bodily '^ (Col. ii. 9). For He is "the 
 effulgence of God's glory, and the very image of 
 His substance " (Heb. i. 3, R. Y.). The ancient 
 formula expresses the exact truth : " Si Christus 
 non Deus, nan bonus " — " If Clrrist be not God, He 
 is not good." 
 
 7. The omissions in John accord with the writer's 
 plan. There is no genealogy ; instead we have His 
 eternal preexistence asserted. There is no sermon 
 on the mount, nor in the plain ; instead, Christ 
 Himself is presented as Light, and Life, and 
 Truth. Xo description of the character, relations, 
 and duties of a subject in the kingdom of God ; 
 instead, we have the character, relations, and life of 
 those who receive Christ, who are united to Him, 
 and are dwelt in by His Spirit. In John we find 
 nothing of the call of the apostles, nor the mission 
 of evangelists ; instead, the far-reaching words of 
 the Lord : " Ye have not chosen me, but I have 
 chosen you^ and ordained you^ that ye should go 
 
Gospel According to John 217 
 
 and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should 
 remain '^ (xv. 16). There is no reference to the 
 transfiguration, nor to the Lord's Supper, nor to 
 Christian Baptism. There are no shrinking ap- 
 prehensions of the cross, no Gethsemane, and no 
 angel strengtiiens Him. When the band of offi- 
 cers and men, with Judas at their head, appear in 
 the garden to arrest Him, they go '^backward 
 and fall to the ground '' at His simple " I am 
 he '' (xviii. 6). To the Roman judge, with the 
 colossal power of the vast empire behind him, 
 Jesus says, " I am a king. To this end was I 
 born, and for this cause came I into the world.'' 
 " Thou couldest have no power at all against me, 
 except it were given thee from above" (xviii. 37 ; 
 xix. 11). 
 
 No company of women bewail Him, no dying 
 malefactor testifies, ^^ This man hath done nothing 
 amiss." Nor is it here recorded that He spoke 
 the words of Psalm xxii. 1, words so solemn, so 
 appalling in their mysteriousness, " My God, my 
 God, why hast thou forsaken me?" Nor any 
 prayer, "Father, forgive them," "Father, into 
 thy hands I commend my spirit." On the cross, 
 in John, He speaks three words : the first, as if 
 on a quiet deathbed, He provides for His mother; 
 the second, " I thirst," that the Scripture might 
 be fulfilled ; the third, " It is finished," the shout 
 of the conqueror. 
 
218 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 TV. Summary of the Principal Doctrines in 
 the Fourth Gospel. 
 
 1. The Teaching of John as respects God. It 
 is very comprehensive and deep. We can do no 
 more than offer an epitome of it. 
 
 (1) "God is (a) Spirit" (iv. 24). It is of the 
 divine Nature, or Essence, Jesus is here speak- 
 ing. As a Spirit, God is absolutely free from 
 limitations of time and space. As a Spirit, He is 
 invisible and therefore without form (i. 18). 
 This infinite and eternal Spirit is revealed by the 
 Lord Jesus Christ (i. 18). If, in connection 
 with this, w^e may take the other two descriptive 
 titles found in 1 John i, 5 ; iv. 8, God is de- 
 clared to be " Spirit," " Light," and " Love." 
 
 (2) God is Father. John represents our Lord 
 as continually speaking of God as " the Fatlier," 
 "my Father," "your Father." No less than 
 one hundred and twenty-one times is this title 
 found in the Fourth Gospel. The Old Testa- 
 ment is not silent as to God's Fatherhood. 
 The prophets know Him as the Father of 
 the Hebrew people (Deut. xxxii. 6 ; Isa. Ixiii. 
 16 ; Ixiv. 8). The synoptists advance the doc- 
 trine much farther, and speak of Him as the 
 Fatlier of the Lord Jesus (Matt. xi. 27), and 
 of believers (Matt. v. 16, 45). But in John the 
 doctrine is carried far beyond anything found in 
 the Old Testament Scriptures or in the other 
 
Gospel According to John 219 
 
 gospels. Here it is the fullness of the epistles 
 that we find. God is the eternal Father (xvii. 
 5), the holy Father (xvii. 11), the righteous 
 Father (xvii. 25). He is the living Father (vi. 
 57), who has life in Himself (v. 2G), who raises 
 up the dead (v. 21), and who seeks spiritual 
 worshipers (iv. 23). He is greater than all (x. 
 29) ; greater than the Son (xiv. 28). He loves 
 the Son (v. 20) and loves all who believe in the 
 Son (xiv. 21 ; xvi. 27). The Father sends the 
 Son (x. 36) ; seals the Son (vi. 27) ; bears testi- 
 mony to the Son (v. 37 ; viii. 18). Jesus' teach- 
 ing is the Father's (vii. 16 ; viii. 28) ; His works 
 are the Father's (xiv. 10) ; His words are the 
 Father's (xvii. 8) ; and He reveals the Father's 
 name to the disciples (xvii. 26). 
 
 2. The Teaching of John as to the Person of 
 Christ, \yith singular power John unfolds the 
 glories of the Lord Jesus. He dwells on His 
 essential glory, the glory He had with the Father 
 before the world was. With a superhuman pen 
 he traces His moral glory, i. e., the absolute 
 perfection that marked every path He trod on 
 earth, every relation He sustained toward God 
 and men. John presents Him as the spotless 
 One who was near men in their weakness, help- 
 lessness, need, and sinfulness, but who was apart 
 from all their tempers, their selfishness and sin. 
 He did more than look upon the misery that was 
 
220 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 round Him ; He entered into it with a sympathy 
 that was all His own. He did more than refuse 
 the pollution that was round Him ; He kept the 
 very distance of holiness itself from every touch 
 and stain of it. His holiness made Him an ut- 
 ter stranger in such a polluted world ; His grace 
 kept Him ever active in such a needy world. 
 How full, complete is John concerning the Lord's 
 moral glory ! Nor is our evangelist silent as to 
 Christ's official glory, i. e., the glory He won for 
 Himself as the reward of His perfect obedience 
 to the Father's will. He is here crowned with 
 glory and honor in view of His finished work. 
 But John gives us much more than this, precious 
 as are these glories of the Lord. 
 
 (1) The Messiahship of Jesus is most distinctly 
 taught (i. 50, 51 ; iv. 26 ; xi. 27). As the prom- 
 ised Messiah He is the prophet who teaches, the 
 priest who atones, and the king foretold. 
 
 (2) The union of the two Natures, the divine 
 and the human, in His one person, is as distinctly 
 taught. The mystery of His complex personality 
 is constantly before us as we read. Human limi- 
 tations and illimitable power are strangely pres- 
 ent in Him. He rests a weary, thirsty traveler 
 at the well of Sychar, yet He tells the Samaritan 
 woman the secrets of her life. At the grave of 
 Lazarus human tears of sorrow stream down His 
 face while the commanding voice cries, " Lazarus, 
 
Gospel According to John 221 
 
 come forth ! " In the garden the mob go back- 
 ward and fall to the ground at His majestic '^ I 
 am he/^ yet He is taken, bound, and led away. 
 He is crucified, yet He Himself surrenders His 
 spirit. John xvi. 28 is an epitome of the whole 
 doctrine of the person and mission of the Lord 
 Jesus, " I came forth from the Father, and am 
 come iuto the world : again, I leave the world, 
 and go unto the Father." From God, into the 
 world, back to God; preexistence, incarnation, 
 glorification ; oneness with the Father, procession 
 from the Father, redemption completed. He is 
 the God-Man, uniting two natures in His one 
 person, distinct yet mysteriously blending. 
 
 3. The Teaching as respects the Holy Spirit. 
 John is fuller and clearer on this great subject 
 than the other gospels combined. . 
 
 (1) His personality is affirmed. Every quality, 
 action, mark, and sign that can indicate personal- 
 ity are ascribed to Him in language that refuses 
 to be explained away. 
 
 (2) His mission by the Father and the Son is 
 taught (xiv. 16, 26 ; xv. 26 ; xvi. 7). 
 
 (3) He is given in consequence of Christ's 
 glorification (vii. 39 ; xvi. 7). 
 
 (4) He is called the paraclete, helper, com- 
 forter; ^^ another comforter,'' one instead of 
 Christ, one like Christ, one in addition to Christ 
 (xiv. 16; XV. 26). 
 
222 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 (5) He is to testify of Clirist, and glorify Him 
 (xv. 27 ; xvi. 13, 14). 
 
 (6) He is to be in believers, and abide with 
 tliera forever (xiv. 17). 
 
 (7) He is to convict the world of sin, right- 
 eousness and judgment (xvi. 8-11). 
 
 4. The Teaching as respects the AVorld. By 
 this is meant, chiefly, mankind. The ^' world " 
 in John is that whole order of things which is 
 estranged from God, which is hostile to Him, to 
 His Son, and to His cause. The v/orld in this 
 Gospel (1) knows not God the Father, nor Christ 
 (xvii. 25; i. 10); (2) it hates Christ and His 
 people (vii. 7 ; xv. 19 ; xvii. 14) ; (3) Satan is 
 its prince (xii. 31; xvi. 11); (4) Christ's king- 
 dom is not of this world (xviii. 36) ; (5) God 
 loves the world (iii. 16) ; (6) Christ's mission is 
 to bring salvation to the world, and to call His 
 people out of it (iii. 16, 17 ; xv. 19); (7) Christ 
 shall judge the world (v. 22, 23). 
 
 5. The Teaching as respects the New Birth. 
 We are told that the agent of regeneration is the 
 Spirit of God (iii. 5) ; that the necessity of it is 
 so imperative that except a man be born again 
 he cannot see the kingdom of God, he cannot 
 enter it (iii. 3, 5) ; that this mighty change in our 
 nature can never be wrought by human agency 
 (i. 13). How sweeping is the assertion of this 
 verse ! " Not of blood " are we born into God's 
 
Gospel According to John 223 
 
 family. Not by virtue of a godly parentage, nor 
 because of a holy ancestry, do we become the 
 children of God in the highest and truest sense ; 
 grace- is not hereditary, sin is. Nor "of the 
 will of the flesh,'^ /. c, by reformation, by tak- 
 ing stiff hold of our wills and compelling our- 
 selves to live upright lives. Nor " of the w^ill of 
 man,^' by the influence, the mastery of other 
 men's wills upon us, are we brought into God\s 
 family. In none of these ways are we begotten 
 into the new and eternal life. We are born " of 
 God." How radical is the teaching ! Jesus 
 sounds the lowest deeps into which men are 
 plunged by sin, shows how complete and dread- 
 ful the ruin is ; so bad it is that Grtxl does not 
 propose to mend it ; He creates something alto- 
 o^ether new. 
 
 6. The Teaching as respects Faith. Faith in 
 the Lord Jesus Christ is truly required and its 
 blessedness is exhibited in the other gospels, as 
 indeed throughout all Scripture ; but in the 
 Gospel by John it is made prominent. On its 
 presence or absence in the heart of man every 
 relation to God and to well-])eing is made to 
 turn. More than one hundred times do the 
 terms believe, believe nof, occur in John. The 
 life, the privileges, the bliss, and the glory of him 
 that believes ; the loss, the misery, the judgment, 
 and the death of him that believes not, how full 
 
224 Studies in the Four Gospels 
 
 of them is this Gospel ! It might almost be 
 called the Gospel of Faitli. 
 
 Faitli rests on testimony. The testimony 
 offered in this Gospel is the most trustworthy 
 that can be furnished, for it is both divine and 
 human. The divine witnesses are, the Father, 
 the Son, the Holy Spirit, and the Scriptures 
 (v. 39). The human witnesses are unimpeach- 
 able both as to numbers and credibility. Some 
 are here cited : John the Baptist (iii. 27-36) ; 
 Nathanael (i. 49, 50) ; Disciples (ii. 11) ; Woman 
 of Samaria (iv. 29) ; Samaritans (iv. 42) ; Blind 
 Man (ix. 36-38); Martha (xi. 27); Thomas 
 (xx. 28); John the Apostle (xx. 31; xxi. 24); 
 Moses (v. 46, 47) ; Isaiali (xii. 41). 
 
 The testimony is varied, ample, conclusive. 
 More than forty-five tinfes the verb, "to bear 
 witness," and the noun, " witness,'^ or " testi- 
 mony," are found in John. The evidence, there- 
 fore, on which faith may rest with assured con- 
 fidence, is all that can be asked. Clu'ist, God's 
 gift to the world, is the sole object of faith 
 (iii. 14-18). The work of God is, to believe in 
 Him whom He has sent (vi. 29). The Spirit is 
 received through faith in the Lord Jesus (vii. 39). 
 
 But now note the action of faith as here dis- 
 played. 
 
 (1) Faith is believing God's testimony about 
 His Son, V, 24 ; vi. 40. 
 
Gospel According to John 225 
 
 (2) Faith believes (hears) Christ's words, iv. 
 42 ; V. 24. 
 
 (3) Faith believes Christ's works, x. 38 ; xi. 
 45; xiv. 11. 
 
 (4) Faith receives the Spirit's testimony, xv. 
 26 ; xvi. 14. 
 
 (5) Faith receives the disciples' testimony, 
 xvii. 20. 
 
 (6) Faith feeds on Christ as the living bread, 
 vi. 35. 
 
 (7) Faith drinks of the water Christ gives, 
 iv. 14; vii. 37, 38. 
 
 Note likewise some of its effects : — 
 
 (1) By faith we become God's children, i. 12. 
 
 (2) Faith delivers from condemnation, iii. 18. 
 
 (3) Faith delivers from the judgment, v. 24, 
 R. V. 
 
 (4) Faith secures eternal life, iii. 16, 36. 
 
 (5) Faith satisfies the soul, vi. 35. ' 
 
 (6) Faith is the unfailing remedy for heart 
 trouble, xiv. 1. 
 
 (7) Faith is assured of a glorious resurrection, 
 vi. 40 ; xi. 25, 26. 
 
 Nor, in the Gospel by John, are the action and 
 the effects of unbelief any less prominent and de- 
 cisive than those of faith. Let us note some 
 of these also : 
 
 (1) Unbelief springs from a depraved and hos- 
 tile will, V. 40. 
 
 15 
 
226 Studies yfin the Four Gospels 
 
 (2) Unbelief deliberately rejects Clirist^s testi- 
 mony, XV. 22-24. 
 
 (3) Unbelief is the sin of sins, xvi. 9. 
 
 (4) Unbelief hates both Christ and the Father, 
 XV. 23, 24. 
 
 (5) Unbelief lies under God's wrath, iii. 36, 
 and God's condemnation, iii. 18. 
 
 (6) Unbelievers shall die in their sins, viii. 24. 
 
 (7) Unbelief shall not see life, iii. 36. 
 
 7. The Teaching as respects the Oneness of 
 Christ and Believers. It is here that we first — 
 and until we reach the epistles — it is here mainly 
 that we learn the precious truth that Christ and 
 His people are united in one, that He is in them 
 and they are in Him, as dwelt in by His Spirit. 
 This glorious doctrine is brought to view more 
 particularly in chapter xv. 1-8, in the figure of 
 the vine and its branches, " I am the vine," 
 the whole vine, root, branches, twigs, leaves, 
 fruit ; for Christ and His people are one. There 
 lies back of this precious truth another on which 
 it rests, viz., the gift to Christ by the Father of 
 all those who believe on Him. And above all 
 other books John signifies it by his repeated use 
 of the word give (see vi. 37 ; x. 29 ; xvii. 2, 6, 9, 
 11, 12, etc.). There is the gift to Christof all 
 believers ; the gift of eternal life by Christ to all 
 believers, and the union of them with Himself. 
 He says of His people, and the Spirit enables 
 
Gospel According to John 227 
 
 them to know it, " I am in my Father, and yc in 
 me, and I in you " (xiv. 20 ; xvii. 23). The as- 
 surance and joy that we are in Him is grounded 
 on the other cognate truth, that He is in us. And 
 this identity is so close and intimate that He is 
 pleased to represent it by the ineffable union 
 wdiich subsists between the Father and Him- 
 self (xvii. 22, 23). 
 
CONCLUSION 
 
 Here these studies in the gospels end. One re- 
 flection alone may be indulged — a reflection whicli 
 has constantly pressed on the mind of the writer 
 as he has pursued this great subject, viz., that 
 the character of Jesus Christ, as delineated in the 
 gospels, cannot be the product of the unaided 
 hnman intellect. The portrait of Him which the 
 authors of the gospels have draAvn is that of a 
 subject too majestic and too sublime ever to have 
 been idealized by uninspired men. He stands 
 before ns arrayed in a beauty and a grandeur 
 which dwarf "the starry heavens above us, and 
 the moral law within us.'' He shines forth with 
 the self-evidencing light of*the noonday sun. He 
 is too great, too pure, too perfect, to have been 
 invented by any sinful and erring man or set of 
 men. His moral glories, which shine through all 
 the pages of the gospels with a deathless luster, 
 tell us of the presence of One in this dark and tear- 
 ful world who is more than man ; and they tell 
 us, also, that the pens which traced them were 
 inspired. Manifold are the external proofs in 
 
 229 
 
230 Conclusion 
 
 favor of the integrity of the evangelistic nar- 
 ratives ; but greater far and more manifold are 
 the internal evidences of their inspiration. Jesus 
 Christ is herein displayed as a divinely perfect 
 character ; perfect as a child and as a man ; per- 
 fect in all His ways, and words, and service ; in 
 Avisdom and knowledge ; in grace and holiness ; in 
 nearness and distance, among friends and enemies ; 
 in life and in death. Jesus Christ, in all that He 
 was while sojourning in the flesh, and in all that 
 He now is in the highest heavens, is the one un- 
 failing and unanswerable proof that the gospel is 
 from God, that it reveals God. 
 
 God spake to the fathers in the prophets. He 
 now speaks to us in His Son. In either case, 
 whether by the prophets or by the Son, the 
 speaker is God. 
 
BS2555.4.M82 
 
 Studies in the four Gospels, 
 
 Princeton Theological Semmary-Speer Library 
 
 1 1012 00013 4975